Georgia Power Position Statement on Light Emitting Diode (LED) Outdoor Lighting Systems

Outdoor lighting systems using new LED technology are attracting news media attention. Georgia Power is testing and evaluating this technology and monitoring the progress being made in making this a viable light source option for our customers for outdoor lighting applications. Information from LED and lighting fixture manufacturers and professional organizations including the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) is included in our review and evaluation process.

To provide a desired light level LED outdoor lighting fixtures typically utilize multiple LED's mounted in one or more arrays within a fixture. The industry is making steady progress in developing reliable LED lights with lumens (the measure of the amount of light produced by the light) per watt ratios that are competitive with many high intensity discharge metal halide and high pressure sodium lamps. Major manufacturers are also developing and improving fixtures that will use LED's.

While progress is being made in the development of reliable LED lights for the outdoor lighting market, they have not yet reached the level needed to be included as a part of Georgia Power's outdoor lighting product offering. We believe additional development is needed before LED lights and lighting systems can be approved for use in outdoor lighting applications for our customers. We expect that the rapid progress in LED outdoor lighting development will allow us to begin using LED's in the future.

Issues affecting LED use for area and roadway lighting applications:

Development of national standards for common connections, replacement parts and for the measure of LED fixture and system life
Resolution of heat dissipation issues that can shorten the life span of the light
Advances in lighting design program standards
Development of fixtures with appropriate light output to provide a range of lighting capabilities for area and roadway lighting applications
Costs competitive with current metal halide or high pressure sodium lights
Market growth sufficient to justify a supply chain capable of meeting customer demand

Georgia Power believes LED offers great promise as a future technology. It offers potential for energy savings, increased durability, reduced maintenance, surface luminance uniformity and the ability to more precisely control light distribution for outdoor lighting applications. Good advances are being made to develop and produce LED lighting products for roadway and area lighting applications, but it is still too early for large scale usage. For additional information please contact Georgia Power at 1-888-768-8458.