MERRILLVILLE, Ind., Dec. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- To better serve customers and investors, NiSource Inc. (NYSE: NI) will be incorporating the Edison Electric Institute's (EEI's) pilot environmental, social, governance, and sustainability-related (ESG/sustainability) reporting template into its suite of sustainability reporting resources. This is part of an ongoing initiative to help provide investors with more uniformity and better consistency for ESG/sustainability metrics.

"NiSource has a long history of disclosure and transparency demonstrating our sustainability progress – while also outlining our plan and expectations for the future," said NiSource Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Donald Brown. "EEI's effort to create uniformity and consistency will help companies, investors and other interested stakeholders more accurately compare the most relevant sustainability/ESG data across the electric power industry."

In order to assess the current ESG/sustainability reporting practices, NiSource joined an EEI working group comprised of institutional investors who specialize in asset management, ESG/sustainability, investment banking, and buy-side and sell-side research and electric company officials from various disciplines, including accounting, environment, ESG/sustainability, finance, treasury, investor relations, and legal.

"EEI's member companies are committed to a clean and affordable energy future, and our industry is leading the way in emissions reductions, having cut carbon dioxide emissions 25 percent below 2005 levels as of the end of 2016," said EEI President Tom Kuhn. "In an effort to become a model industry for ESG/sustainability reporting, EEI has been working closely with our large investors and financial institutions to better understand their informational needs regarding reporting metrics."

Over the past 18 months, NiSource and other members of the working group helped EEI develop the template for the qualitative information, including ESG/sustainability governance and strategy, and quantitative information, including portfolio data, emissions, and human and natural resources, that investors are seeking. The template also helps to provide investors with more clarity on risks from stranded assets and regulatory issues, as well as opportunities for investments in clean energy.

As a participant in the pilot, NiSource published its 2016 data at   www.nisource.com/company/sustainability.

Following this pilot, EEI plans to release Version 1 of the template in mid-2018 for member company use with reporting 2017 data.

More information is available here on EEI's website, www.eei.org.

About NiSource
NiSource Inc. (NYSE: NI) is one of the largest fully-regulated utility companies in the United States, serving approximately 3.5 million natural gas customers and 500,000 electric customers across seven states through its local Columbia Gas and NIPSCO brands. Based in Merrillville, Indiana, NiSource's approximately 8,000 employees are focused on safely delivering reliable and affordable energy to our customers and communities we serve. NiSource has been designated a World's Most Ethical Company by the Ethisphere Institute since 2012, is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability – North America Index and was named by Forbes magazine as the top rated utility among America's Best Large Employers in 2017 . Additional information about NiSource, its investments in modern infrastructure and systems, its commitments and its local brands can be found at www.nisource.com. Follow us at www.facebook.com/nisource, www.linkedin.com/company/nisource or www.twitter.com/nisourceinc. NI-F

 

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SOURCE NiSource Inc.