MasterCard Worldwide and The Home Depot Celebrate Energy Awareness Month with up to $1 Million Donation to Habitat for Humanity

(3BLMedia/theCSRfeed) Atlanta, GA and Purchase, NY - Oct. 5, 2010 - MasterCard Worldwide and The Home Depot® today announced that in support of Energy Awareness Month, 10 percent of the appliance price of all purchases of ENERGY STAR® qualified appliances made with a MasterCard card at The Home Depot through October 31, 2010 (excluding taxes, delivery, installation fees and returns), will be donated to Habitat for Humanity International up to $1 million U.S. dollars.   ENERGY STAR appliances include refrigerators, freezers, clothes washers and dishwashers.  Learn more at www.homedepot.com/buildhomes.   

“In recognition of Energy Awareness Month, and in light of the increase in energy consumption in today’s average home, MasterCard and The Home Depot have partnered to encourage consumers to make purchases that will help drive energy efficiency,” said Craig Vosgburg, group executive, Market Development, U.S. Markets at MasterCard Worldwide. “In October, consumers who shop at The Home Depot for ENERGY STAR qualified appliances will not only start lowering their energy bills, but they’ll also support Habitat for Humanity’s mission to provide safe, decent, affordable shelter in partnership with people simply by choosing to pay with a MasterCard card.”

Using ENERGY STAR qualified appliances can provide significant savings on consumers’ monthly utility bills.  For instance:

Habitat for Humanity International and The Home Depot Foundation partnered in 2009 to launch a five-year green building initiative to help Habitat affiliates in the United States incorporate sustainable building practices in 5,000 homes.  Funded by a $30 million grant from The Home Depot Foundation, the partnership has already resulted in the construction of 1,500 homes that meet ENERGY STAR guidelines or another nationally recognized green building standard. Learn more at www.facebook.com/homedepotfoundation.

The Home Depot also offers Eco Options, a program classifying more than 3,700 products that have less of an impact on the environment, empowering customers to make a difference in their own homes.  Products include ENERGY STAR qualified products, no and low VOC paints, environmentally preferred cleaners, Water Sense labeled bath fixtures, organic plant food and more.  Learn more about Eco Options and how to perform a home energy audit at www.homedepot.com/ecooptions.

-- Clothes washers:  ENERGY STAR qualified clothes washers use about 30 percent less energy and 50 percent less water than regular washers.

-- Refrigerators:  ENERGY STAR qualified refrigerators are 20 percent more energy efficient than the minimum federal standard.

-- Dishwashers and Freezers:  ENERGY STAR qualified models are, on average, 10 percent more energy efficient than non-qualified models.

 “The Home Depot is passionate about providing its customers with easy, affordable ways to lower the cost of operating their homes on a daily basis, and we are committed to helping Habitat for Humanity build energy-efficient homes for families in need,” said Dwaine Kimmet, Treasurer & VP-Financial Services at The Home Depot. “This program brings those two causes together by giving customers an incentive to make purchases that will conserve energy and save money, while also supporting the important mission of Habitat for Humanity.”

About MasterCard Worldwide

As a leading global payments company, MasterCard Worldwide prides itself on being at the heart of commerce, helping to make life easier and more efficient for everyone, everywhere.  MasterCard serves as a franchisor, processor and advisor to the payments industry, and makes commerce happen by providing a critical economic link among financial institutions, governments, businesses, merchants, and cardholders worldwide.  In 2009, $2.5 trillion in gross dollar volume was generated on its products by consumers around the world.  Powered by the MasterCard Worldwide Network – the fastest payment processing network in the world – MasterCard processes over 22 billion transactions each year,  has the capacity to handle 140 million transactions per hour, with an average network response time of 140 milliseconds and with 99.99 percent reliability.  MasterCard advances global commerce through its family of brands, including MasterCard®, Maestro®, and Cirrus®; its suite of core products such as credit, debit, and prepaid; and its innovative platforms and functionalities, such as MasterCard PayPass™ and MasterCard inControl™.  MasterCard serves consumers, governments, and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. For more information, please visit us at www.mastercard.com. Follow us on Twitter: @mastercardnews.

About The Home Depot

The Home Depot® is the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer, with 2,244 retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, 10 Canadian provinces, Mexico and China. In fiscal 2009, The Home Depot had sales of $66.2 billion and earnings from continuing operations of $2.6 billion. The Company employs more than 300,000 associates. The Home Depot's stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HD) and is included in the Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index. For more information, please visit us at www.homedepot.com/buildhomes. Follow us on Twitter: @homedepot, @homedepotdeals.

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