Media Contact: Sonya Headen (702) 367-5222
Analysts Contact:  Britta Carlson (702) 367-5624

Nevada Power Company, a subsidiary of Sierra Pacific Resources (NYSE: SRP), announced today that the first phase of the Chuck Lenzie Generating Station is now completed.

"We are very pleased that the 580-megawatt first block of the Lenzie facility is commercial well ahead of our March 31 deadline,"said Roberto Denis, senior vice president of energy supply."We now plan on putting the second block, which is the same size, into operation in time for the hot summer months. This state-of-the-art facility will benefit our southern Nevada customers in that its efficiencies allow us to produce power utilizing less natural gas than in older generating plants as well as providing us with a new internal source of power rather than buying on the open market."

The Lenzie plant consists of four natural gas-fired combustion turbines, two steam turbines and four heat recovery steam generators operating in combined-cycle mode. The plant is located in the Moapa Valley, 20 miles northeast of Las Vegas. It is the first company-owned power plant completed since 1995.

Nevada Power Company is a regulated public utility engaged in the distribution, transmission, generation, purchase and sale of electric energy in the southern Nevada communities of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Henderson, Searchlight, Laughlin and their adjoining areas. The Company also provides electricity to Nellis Air Force Base, the Department of Energy at Mercury and Jackass Flats at the Nevada Test Site. Nevada Power Company provides electricity to approximately 750,000 residential and business customers in a 4,500 square mile service area.

Sierra Pacific Resources is a holding company whose principal subsidiaries are Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power Company, the electric utility for most of northern Nevada and the Lake Tahoe area of California. Sierra Pacific Power Company also distributes natural gas in the Reno-Sparks area of northern Nevada. Other subsidiaries include the Tuscarora Gas Pipeline Company, which owns 50 percent interest in an interstate natural gas transmission partnership and several unregulated energy services companies.

Certain matters in this press release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, Nevada risks related to on-going construction of the Lenzie facility, changes in the anticipated costs of the construction, changes in applicable environmental laws or regulations, Nevada Power Company's ability to maintain access to the capital markets to obtain financing on favorable terms, and regulatory treatment of costs associated with constructing and operating the projects. Additional cautionary statements regarding other risk factors that could have an effect on the future performance of Sierra Pacific Resources and Nevada Power Company are contained in their Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2005, filed with the SEC. The Companies undertake no obligation to release publicly the result of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.