Sierra Pacific Power Company
Contact: Faye I. Andersen
Phone: (775) 848-4822

For Immediate Release

Some Sierra Pacific customers were without power this afternoon from 20 to 50 minutes. Three incidents contributed to the loss of service:

• Reduced supply over the company's transmission system from the East, particularly Idaho.
• A problem at one of the units at the company's Valmy Plant, east of Winnemucca.
• A problem at the Fort Churchill Plant, near Yerington.

As a result, Sierra Pacific initiated its emergency outage system. Service was lost to approximately 12,000 customers in parts of Reno, Carson City, North Lake Tahoe, Elko and Battle Mountain.

In response, Sierra Pacific brought on line emergency units at its Tracy Plant, east of Reno that enabled the company to restore service to affected customers within 20 to 50 minutes. The system stabilized at 4 p.m. Sierra Pacific officials have already contacted the regional agency in charge of energy supply in the West and asked them to investigate what may have caused service disruptions in our area and surrounding states. Sierra Pacific has never before had to activate its emergency outage system. On rare occasions the company has asked for voluntary conservation by customers to assist with reducing demand for energy.

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