December 14, 2007

Bangor Hydro Electric Company Gearing up for Weekend Storm

Bangor, ME--Snow, sleet, and freezing rain is expected to cause power outages for Bangor Hydro Electric Company customers Sunday and into Monday. Field crews have been placed on stand-by in anticipation of outages and the Customer Service Center will be staffed on Sunday as well.

Customers are encouraged to prepare for the possibility of up to several days without power, especially in coastal areas. Those using generators and alternate heat sources should use them in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. It's also recommended to have generators professionally installed.

"Our crews will be dealing with inclement weather and slick road conditions," said Kevin Kenny, Field Operations Manager. "We ask customers to stay clear of our crews and trucks to avoid unnecessary safety risks."

Bangor Hydro's goal is to restore power to all customers as quickly as possible. Crews will assess the damage to the system and restore large transmission lines first followed by substations. Distribution lines are cleared starting closest to the substation and working to the end of each line. By following the flow of power through the system, we can restore service to the greatest number of customers most efficiently. During this process, we also focus on restoring service to emergency and communications services.

"If you see a downed power line, please do not touch or attempt to move it," Kenny said. "Please allow our experienced crews to remove all power lines."

Customers may call Bangor Hydro's Service Center to report a power outage, downed line or other power emergency at 1-800-440-1111. Updated outage information is available at www.bhe.com.

Bangor Hydro-Electric Company (BHE) is an electric utility wholly-owned by Emera Inc. BHE serves a population of 192,000 in an area encompassing 5,275 square miles in eastern and east coastal Maine. BHE is a member of the New England Power Pool and is interconnected with other New England utilities to the south and with the New Brunswick Power Corp. to the north. Visit us at www.bhe.com.

Emera Inc. (EMA-TSX) is an energy and services company with $4.0 billion in assets. Electricity is Emera's core business. The company has two wholly-owned regulated electric utility subsidiaries, Nova Scotia Power Inc. and Bangor Hydro-Electric Company, which together serve 590,000 customers. Emera's other investments include a joint venture interest in Bear Swamp, a 600 megawatt pumped storage hydro-electric facility in northern Massachusetts; a 12.9% interest in the Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline ; and Emera Energy Services which manages energy assets on behalf of third parties and provides related services. Visit Emera on the web at www.emera.com.