Latest round of CFL giveaways a huge success

A busy 13-day stretch for Mississippi Power’s Energy Efficiency Team and customer service representatives translated into 2,930 customers receiving more than 29,000 free compact fluorescent light bulbs.

“The giveaways went great,” said Energy Efficiency associate Mitzi Starcher. “As always, the customers were very appreciative to receive the bulbs.”

The third round of CFL giveaways took place at 14 different locations across the service territory, including Newton, Meridian, Stonewall, Quitman, Bay St. Louis, Pascagoula, Gulfport, Biloxi, Wiggins, Laurel, Ellisville, Picayune, Poplarville and Hattiesburg.

The 2016 amount surpasses last year’s count of 27,650 CFL bulbs distributed and the 19,350 bulbs handed out during the first round of giveaways in 2014.

“We’ve continued the CFL giveaway program as part of our eight EE quick-start programs,” said Ben Doughman, Energy Efficiency team leader. “The goal is to reach as many customers as possible to help educate them on ways to save energy and provide them with the necessary tools to help change their behavior at home.”

CFLs have several advantages over incandescent light bulbs:

• CFLs last from 8-10 times longer, use about 75 percent less energy and produce 90 percent less heat while delivering more light per watt. For example, a 25-watt CFL provides about 1,800 lumens, compared to 1,750 lumens from a 100-watt incandescent lamp.

• CFLs save you money. One 20-watt CFL replacing a 75-watt incandescent bulb can save you about $66 dollars over the life of the bulb (based on $.12 kWh). Replace one 100-watt incandescent bulb with a 25-watt CFL and save about $74 dollars over the life of the bulb.

• Incandescent bulbs are inefficient as up to 95 percent of the energy used produces heat, not light. CFLs produce little to no heat, making them not only more efficient, but safer to handle. Additional savings from CFLs may be realized in reduced air conditioning cost.

CFL By The Numbers

CFLs Distributed

2014: 19,350

2015: 27,650

2016: 29,300

Customers Receiving CFLs

2014: 1,900

2015: 2,765

2016: 2,930