Media Contact: Adam Grant, (702) 402-5222
Investor Contact: Britta Carlson, (702) 402-5624

Sierra Pacific Resources (NYSE: SRP) announced today that Gary L. Lavey, CPA, has joined the company as vice president of Internal Audit, effective immediately. He reports to the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors.

Lavey, whose professional career spans 28 years, most recently vice president of Risk Management for CNG Financial, a company with locations in 34 states and two countries.

Lavey's experience includes seven years with the Cinergy Corporation where he served as vice president of Global Risk Management, responsible for internal audit as well as the development of sophisticated risk management systems for four trading floors and activities involving worldwide investments andjoint ventures. His additional energy industry experience includes positions with Ameren Energy Inc. and LG&E Energy Marketing Inc.

He is a founding member of the Committee of Chief Risk Officers, the Conference Board's Enterprise Risk Management team and the Electrical Power Supply Association Executive Group.

Lavey graduated from Bellarmine University in 1981 with a B.A. degree in accounting. He and his wife, Janet, are relocating to Las Vegas from Edgewood, Ky.  They have two children currently attending college.

Headquartered in Nevada, Sierra Pacific Resources is a holding company whose principal subsidiaries, Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power Company, are doing business as NV Energy. Serving a 54,500-square-mile service territory that stretches north to south from Elko to Laughlin, NV Energy provides a wide range of energy services and products to approximately 2.4 million citizens of Nevada as well as approximately 40 million tourists annually.