Sierra Pacific Power Company
Contact: Bob Sagan
Phone: (775) 834-4834

For Immediate Release

Sierra Pacific Power Co. today unveiled a new energy conservation program that takes a new approach to offering practical energy saving information so consumers can make very specific conservations decisions that best fit their lifestyle or business needs. The company also announced it is creating a senior management position and program team dedicated to developing energy conservation programs.

The program, called"Take Control,"is designed to take complex or generalized energy conservation information and translate it into real and practical choices for consumers.

"Most consumers in Nevada are aware of just how serious the energy crunch is in the western U.S.,"said Jeff Ceccarelli, president of Sierra Pacific Power."What they now want is better information about how they can manage their energy usage, and this program takes a fresh approach to giving them real choices and control."

Bob Balzar, newly named director of the"Take Control"program, said the conservation effort will continue to be developed, but will include web-based home audits that consumers can do themselves, a range of educational programs, and partnerships with suppliers and other energy experts to encourage investment in energy-saving measures for homes and businesses.

Sierra Pacific has designed a web page at www.sierrapacific.com/conservation to walk customers through do-it-yourself online energy audits for homes and businesses. The site also will offer energy-efficiency and conservation tips, and provides an energy expert to help with individual questions and concerns.

Sierra Pacific will also offer on-line energy experts to answer questions and offer advice and has scheduled several community meetings in the region to conduct seminars and workshops at the local level. The Take Control team will focus on developing no-cost or low- cost programs to save energy and reduce costs for residential customers, such as energy self audits, insulation and weatherization programs; programs for commercial customers, such as the use of energy saving technologies for conservation with refrigeration, air conditioning and heating units; and energy efficient curriculums and student-directed school energy audits for industrial and institutional customers.