PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Penguins are shifting their arena naming rights from Consol Energy Center to PPG Paints Arena.
The move comes as Pittsburgh-based PPG increases its efforts in the retail paint business and Consol, based in suburban Cecil Township, has struggled with financial losses while transitioning from a coal-based firm to one fueled by the future of natural gas.
“It’s a great opportunity for PPG and it’s a great opportunity for the Penguins,” team president David Morehouse said at a news conference Tuesday. “It’s not going to be just a name on the building.”
Morehouse and Bryan Iams, PPG’s vice president of corporate and government affairs, said the team and worldwide coatings company plan cross-promotions to boost both brands, as well as the profile of both in the community.
“What you may see is a little more of a fan interaction because of the retail component of their business,” Morehouse said.
Iams said the company sees “a significant opportunity from a growth standpoint. A great opportunity to increase sales in all our stores.” The naming rights deal also boosts the company’s profile in the Pittsburgh region where 2,500 of its 46,000 worldwide employees are based.
Consol became a major Penguins sponsor before they won the Stanley Cup in 2009, while still playing in the since-razed Civic Arena across the street. The energy company signed on as the new arena’s title sponsor before it opened in 2010. The 21-year deal was estimated to be worth about $105 million, though the terms were never formally disclosed, nor were those of the new deal.
Consol wasn’t represented at the news conference, but its president and CEO, Nick DeIuliis, issued a statement, saying the company’s “mission back then was to catapult the region to new heights by catalyzing the creation of a venue to benefit the entire tristate community. We also wanted to keep a hockey team in our region,” he said, referring to the public-private partnership that funded the arena and prevented the Penguins from moving.
