Southwest Gas Corporation is principally engaged in the business of purchasing, distributing and transporting natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers in the southwestern United States. Southwest has approximately 2,400 employees who serve more than 1.8 million customers in Arizona, Nevada and portions of California. The company added 5,000 customers in 2009. An investor-owned utility, Southwest Gas shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Since 1931, Southwest Gas has been committed to excellence in serving its primary constituencies -- its customers, its employees, its shareholders, and the communities in which it operates.

Natural gas, as the name implies, is found in gaseous form naturally, underground at varying depths and geographical formations. It is one of the most abundant energy sources in North America, and because it is produced domestically, it is not subject to foreign disruptions of price or supply. Comprised primarily of methane, natural gas is odorless and colorless when it comes out of the ground. After impurities are removed, the natural gas is introduced into the 1.3-million-mile interstate pipeline system where it is transported to the service areas of local distribution companies like Southwest Gas. Southwest Gas, in turn, delivers the gas to homes and businesses in the communities it serves. Prior to distribution, a harmless odorant is added to the gas so any leakage can be easily detected before an unsafe situation occurs. In addition to this "rotten egg" odor, natural gas has some built-in safety features. It is lighter than air, so it will rise and dissipate into the atmosphere in the event of a leak. And it has a very narrow combustion range, igniting only when mixed with air at a ratio of between 4 and 14 percent. Any mixture higher or lower than that range and natural gas simply won't burn. It also requires a very high degree of heat, at least 1200 degrees Fahrenheit, before it will ignite. Once combustion occurs, natural gas is one of the cleanest-burning fuels available today. When it is burned properly, the only emissions are carbon dioxide (which is what we exhale when we breathe) and water vapor. Because of its clean-burning properties, natural gas has become the environmental fuel of choice for many residential, commercial and industrial applications. Such applications include: space heating and cooling, water heating, cooking, clothes drying; and as a fuel for fireplaces, vehicles, power plants, commercial and industrial boilers, as well as commercial and industrial processing. Today, some 60 million homes and businesses across the nation rely on natural gas to meet their energy needs.

Natural Gas -- safe, clean, economical, and domestically produced.