Mark Rupnik Appointed Senior Vice President and General Manager of North American Operations for BPL Global

Electric Utility Veteran and Change Agent Joins Distribution Intelligence Company 

PITTSBURGH, PA., July 11, 2007 – BPL Global™, Ltd., an international leader in Distribution Intelligence and Broadband over Power Line Solutions, announced today that is has appointed Mark Rupnik as senior vice president and general manager of North American operations. In this position, Mr. Rupnik will be responsible for all North American operations. With close to 25 years experience with Duquesne Light, Mr. Rupnik is an electric utility veteran with extensive utility knowledge and expertise.

“I have the unusual benefit of joining a company for which I've been a customer, an investor, and a board member,” said Rupnik. “With the advantage of having seen BPL Global grow to become a leading player in the area of electric distribution intelligence, I am joining a company that has the right elements in place to deliver innovative solutions to transform the electric distribution grid. And, the timing is right with the utility industry poised to benefit from new technology that will improve the efficiency and reliability of energy delivery.”

Mr. Rupnik served most recently as vice president of DQE Communications, a subsidiary of Duquesne Light Holdings. DQE Communications owns and operates a high-speed fiber optic network serving Pittsburgh and the surrounding areas of southwestern Pennsylvania. Mr. Rupnik also served as president of Duquesne Broadband, a joint venture between DQE Communications and BPL Global, offering high-speed wireless Internet access to customers through the use of existing utility power lines. Mr. Rupnik is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds a master’s degree in business administration and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Pittsburgh.

“We are fortunate to have attracted someone so talented as Mark,” said Keith Schaefer, CEO, BPL Global. “He has invaluable insights into the power of the solutions we bring to the utility industry. His belief in distribution intelligence and its transformational potential is grounded in his intimate knowledge of our solutions and needs of the utility industry. But most important is Mark’s proven capability for growing businesses in the utility space.”

BPL Global forms joint ventures with electric utilities and Internet service providers (ISPs), ensuring heightened reliability and efficiency of utility grids through distribution intelligence initiatives, while providing data, voice and eventually video broadband services over power lines to multi-occupancy buildings, businesses, government agencies, and consumers. The company’s integrated platform of distribution intelligence applications includes leading solutions for demand management; distribution reliability and business optimization.

About BPL Global
BPL Global, Ltd. is dedicated to leading the transformation of how energy and information are delivered. The company provides Distribution Intelligence Solutions to electric utilities, enabling an intelligent grid to more efficiently manage demand, improve service reliability, and optimize cost and capital productivity. BPL Global provides Broadband Solutions enabling data, voice and video services over power lines to multi-occupancy buildings, businesses, government agencies, and consumers. Operating internationally, the company forms joint ventures with national/regional electric utilities, internet service providers and strategic partners. BPL Global specializes in delivering end-to-end solutions, integrating the best in technology, software, hardware, design, systems integration, and managed services.