Ormat Technologies Contact: Dita Bronicki CEO and President (775) 356-9029dbronicki@ormat.com

 Sierra Pacific
Media Contact: Faye I. Andersen, (775) 834-4822
Analysts: Britta Carlson, (702) 367-5624 

New Geothermal Plant To Be Constructed by Ormat At Its Steamboat Geothermal Area in Nevada

Sierra Pacific Resources (NYSE:SPRP) and ORMAT Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ORA) jointly announced today that Sierra Pacific Power Company, Sierra Pacific Resources'northern Nevada utility, and ORNI 14 LLC, a subsidiary of ORMAT Nevada, Inc., have signed a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for the sale of energy to be produced from Galena No. 3, a new state of the art geothermal power plant to be built in northern Nevada.

Under the new agreement, the Galena No. 3 Geothermal Power Project will be integrated into ORMAT's existing Steamboat Geothermal Complex in Washoe County, Nevada.  The new plant is expected to increase the total output supplied from the Steamboat Known Geothermal Resource Area (KGRA) to Sierra Pacific Power Company by between 15 and 25 megawatts (MW), , bringing the total output of the Steamboat KGRA to approximately 90 MW.

Sierra Pacific Power said the PPA is subject to approval by the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada and will be submitted to the agency this month.  Galena No. 3 is projected to come on line in 2008.

This agreement marks the 10th PPA between ORMAT and Sierra Pacific Power, and the fourth executed since the enactment of Nevada's renewable portfolio standard legislation in 2001.

ORMAT is also in negotiations on two additional geothermal PPAs for projects on Sierra Pacific's"short list"as part of Sierra Pacific's 2005 Request for Proposals for Renewable Energy.

Walter Higgins, chairman and chief executive officer of Sierra Pacific Resources, said,"This agreement is further proof of our company's dedication to renewable power resources and our continuing confidence in ORMAT as a leader and a  pioneer in the geothermal industry in Nevada. ORMAT is recognized worldwide for developing much-needed renewable energy resources.  Nevada's renewable standards and goals are among the most ambitious in the nation. Sierra Pacific Resources can and will achieve the state's goals by working closely with companies such as ORMAT and others who follow ORMAT's lead.  ORMAT already has proven to be one of the best companies at building and operating geothermal projects."

Lucien Bronicki, chairman of ORMAT said,"We're proud to enter into this tenth Power Purchase Agreement in our twentieth year of collaboration with Sierra Pacific. This collaboration in the development of Nevada's geothermal potential, estimated at 1500 MW by the Western Governor's Association task force, will help to make Nevada a leader in geothermal technologies.  Sierra Pacific should be commended for entering into agreements to purchase power produced by renewable sources such as geothermal energy.  Without these agreements, financing and building these plants would be impossible."

The Galena No. 3 project will be an air-cooled binary power plant that re-injects 100 percent of all geothermal fluid produced, while consuming no water or chemicals.  Additionally, as geothermal power works continuously, the Galena No. 3 plant will provide base load power, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.  ORMAT said that, when complete, the total output of the Steamboat KGRA will be sufficient to power 90,000 residences in the Reno-Sparks area. 

About ORMAT Technologies
ORMAT Technologies, Inc. is a vertically integrated company primarily engaged in the geothermal and recovered energy power business. The Company designs, develops, builds, owns and operates geothermal power plants and also designs, develops and builds and plans to own and operate recovered energy-based power plants.  Additionally, the Company designs, manufactures and sells geothermal and recovered energy power units and other power generating equipment and provides related services.  ORMAT products and systems are covered by more than 70 patents.  ORMAT currently operates the following geothermal power plants: in the United States– Brady, Desert Peak, Heber, Mammoth, Ormesa,  Puna and Steamboat; in the Philippines - Leyte; in Guatemala - Zunil; in Kenya– Olkaria; and in Nicaragua - Momotombo.

Safe Harbor Statement
Information provided in this press release may contain statements relating to current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about future events that are"forward-looking statements"as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  These forward-looking statements generally relate to ORMAT's plans, objectives and expectations for future operations and are based upon management's current estimates and projections of future results or trends.  Actual future results may differ materially from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties.  For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, see"Risk Factors"as described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 28,  2006 and the Prospectus Supplement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 5, 2006.

These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About Sierra Pacific Power Company
Headquartered in Reno, Nevada, Sierra Pacific Power Company is the principal utility for most of northern Nevada and the Lake Tahoe area of California. The company serves approximately 300,000 electric customers in northern Nevada and 45,000 electric customers in California. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sierra Pacific Resources, which also is the holding company for Nevada Power Company, the electric utility for southern Nevada. Sierra Pacific Power also distributes natural gas to approximately 135,000 customers in the Reno-Sparks area of northern Nevada. Other subsidiaries of Sierra Pacific Resources include the Tuscarora Gas Pipeline Company, which owns 50 percent interest in an interstate natural gas transmission partnership.

Forward Looking Statements:
This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding the future performance of Sierra Pacific Resources and Sierra Pacific Power Company, 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, ORMAT's ability to complete construction of the geothermal power plant by 2008 or at all, Sierra Pacific Power's ability to obtain required regulatory approvals for the agreement with ORMAT and Sierra Pacific Power's ability to meet its Nevada-mandated renewable requirement. Additional cautionary statements regarding other risk factors that could have an effect on the future performance of Sierra Pacific Resources and Sierra Pacific Power Company are contained in their Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for thequarter ended March 31, 2006, and their Annual Reports on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005, filed with the SEC. Sierra Pacific Resources and Sierra Pacific Power Company 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.