Sierra Pacific Power Company
Contact: Robert Sagan or Karl Walquist
Phone: (775)834-4345

For Immediate Release

Sierra Pacific Power Co. has announced the signing of an exclusive five-year contract for the Cortez Joint Ventures Pipeline Mine Project, to provide electricity and energy services to the newly opened gold mining operation.

The Cortez Pipeline Project is located in Crescent Valley, approximately 35 miles southeast of Battle Mountain, Nevada. Sierra Pacific is currently supplying electricity to existing Cortez Gold Mine operations east of the new project.

The contract calls for the utility to supply electricity to the open pit gold mine, with additional energy provided as the mining operation grows in future years, according to Thomas D. Parker, vice president of Energy Services for Sierra Pacific. The mine use electricity in its 5,000-ton per day mining and milling operations, as well as for removing groundwater from the open pit and reinfiltration to return the water back into the underground system.

When the mine reaches full capacity, energy usage is expected to exceed 20 megawatts, roughly five percent of Sierra Pacific's industrial load.

"We're pleased to continue to be a part of the vital and growing industry of gold mining in northern Nevada," Parker said. The Cortez Pipeline Project is a joint venture between Placer Dome U.S. and Kennecott Explorations Ltd.