LAS VEGAS, Feb 10, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- NV Energy (NYSE: NVE) announced today that it has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with a subsidiary of Ram Power Corporation (TSX: RPG) for energy that will be produced by a new geothermal power plant under development in central Nevada. The 32-megawatt Clayton Valley Geothermal Project is expected to be generating electricity by 2014.

Terms of the power purchase agreement, which is subject to approval by the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada, were not disclosed.

The generating plant is being developed on one of five geothermal leases that Ram Power has acquired from the Bureau of Land Management in Esmeralda County, approximately halfway between Reno and Las Vegas. According to the developer, Clayton Valley has sufficient geothermal resources to produce up to 160 megawatts of electricity, which is enough to serve up to 96,000 households. The project will be developed and operated by Ram Power subsidiary Clayton Valley 1, LLC.

"We're pleased to add more clean renewable energy to our supply portfolio and to expand our use of geothermal power," said NV Energy President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Yackira. "The advantage of geothermal energy is that it's available for our customers around the clock."

NV Energy currently has more than 1,000 megawatts of geothermal, solar, biomass, hydro, waste-heat recovery and wind energy under contract or in the project development stage.

"Based on the 25 years of geothermal project development that Ram Power management has enjoyed in Nevada, we look forward to a successful project and the start of a new era in geothermal power generation in the state," said Ram Power Chief Executive Officer Hezy Ram. "We anticipate the project will be eligible for various federal and state tax incentives once completed."

About NV Energy

Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, NV Energy, Inc. is a holding company with principal subsidiaries, Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power Company, doing business as NV Energy. Serving a combined 54,500-square-mile service territory, NV Energy provides a wide range of energy services and products to approximately 2.4 million citizens of Nevada and nearly 40 million tourists annually. For more information, visit www.nvenergy.com.

About Ram Power Corporation

Ram Power is a renewable energy company based in Reno, Nevada, engaged in the business of acquiring, exploring, developing, and operating geothermal properties and has an interest in geothermal projects primarily in the United States, Canada, and Latin America. For more information, visit www.ram-power.com.

These statements contain forward-looking statements regarding the future performance of Nevada Power Company d/b/a NV Energy, 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, risks related to drilling for geothermal sources, constructing and financing geothermal energy projects, and regulatory approval and permitting. Additional cautionary statements regarding other risk factors that could have an effect on the future performance of NV Energy, are contained in the Annual Reports of NV Energy, Inc. and Nevada Power Company d/b/a NV Energy on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008 and in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2009, June 30, 2009 and September 31, 2009, filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission. NV Energy undertakes 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.