New 2c2i program to cultivate startups working on technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate climate change

PHILADELPHIA (October 3, 2019) – Innovators from across southeastern Pennsylvania can now take advantage of up to $20 million in funding from the Exelon Foundation and Exelon Corp., PECO's parent company, to support startups and the development of technologies that help mitigate climate change. The effort is part of the company's Climate Change Investment Initiative, or 2c2i, launched last week as part of Climate Week NYC, a joint initiative of the United Nations and the City of New York that brings together business, government and institutional leaders to discuss climate-change actions.

The Exelon Foundation will contribute $10 million over the next 10 years to fund the initiative, which will focus on clean energy and environmental technologies with potential for wide-scale commercialization. Exelon Corp. will match that grant with up to a $10 million in-kind investment of pro-bono services, including mentoring entrepreneurs on ways to access other sources of capital, structure business plans, allocate financial resources and meet regulatory requirements. The startups also will be able to tap into Exelon's internal innovation programs – Exelorate Growth, Constellation Technology Ventures and Partnership R&D – for counsel.

"The demand for innovative, clean energy technologies is essential to combating the effects of climate change," said Mike Innocenzo, PECO president and CEO. "This initiative complements our own efforts to advance transportation electrification, energy efficiency, solar, distributed energy and other clean energy technologies across southeastern Pennsylvania."

The initiative marks the company's latest effort to support programs that benefit the environment and adds to its continuing goal to create a clean, next-generation energy grid. Using the innovative approach of impact investing, the initiative will harness and unleash the power of private entrepreneurs that are working on cutting-edge technologies designed to generate a measurable, beneficial impact on climate change.

Through 2c2i, the Exelon Foundation will concentrate on startups working on greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation or building local resiliency through climate change adaptation strategies, and that support achieving local sustainability goals that focus on:

• Improving energy efficiency and/or supply to reduce GHG emissions.
• Electrification of transportation to reduce GHG emissions.
• Infrastructure/community resilience to increasing heat, storm and flood risks.

While the startup companies can hail from anywhere, they must be doing work that benefits one of Exelon's six major urban markets, including Atlantic City, Baltimore, Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. and Wilmington, Del.

Applications for the Exelon Climate Change Investment Initiative can be submitted online at exelonfoundation.org. The 2019 submission deadline is October 25. Following initial reviews and finalist presentations, the Exelon Foundation expects to announce its first funded class of entrepreneurs in December, providing $1 million in total funding to eight to 12 seed-stage startups.

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PECO, founded in 1881, is Pennsylvania's largest electric and natural gas utility. Headquartered in Philadelphia, PECO delivers energy to more than 1.6 million electric customers and more than 523,000 natural gas customers in southeastern Pennsylvania. The company's 2,700 employees are dedicated to the safe and reliable delivery of electricity and natural gas as well as enhanced energy management conservation, environmental stewardship and community assistance. In 2018, PECO was named to Forbes Magazine's list of Best Employers for Women. The company also has an estimated annual economic impact of $4.8 billion in Pennsylvania, supporting more than 9,000 local jobs and producing $775 million in labor income. PECO is a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation (Nasdaq: EXC), the nation's only Fortune 100 utility and leading competitive energy provider. For more information visit PECO.com, and connect with the company on Facebook and Twitter.

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