Acquisition of Generation and Distribution Assets in Kazakhstan.

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 30, 1998--National Power announced today that it is to invest up to US$75 million over the next three years in Kazakhstan's electricity industry.

The Company is to form a partnership with Ormat, an Israeli and US based engineering and manufacturing company. The partnership will own, operate and develop generating plant, district heating and distribution systems supplying Kazakhstan's second largest city, Karaganda.

National Power is to purchase from Ormat for US$20 million:

-- a 50% stake in Karaganda Power Company (KPC), which owns

coal-fired plant with a capacity of 635MW electrical and 1,500MW heat, and an associated district heating system

-- a 35% stake in Karaganda Regional Electricity Company, the main

purchaser of power from KPC, which has some 400,000 customers.

National Power and Ormat are to invest jointly up to US$110 million progressively over the next three years to refurbish and extend the generating plant, district heating and distribution systems.

Peter Windsor, National Power's International Business Development Director, said: "This is an exciting and challenging investment in the electricity industry of Kazakhstan, a country with an emerging market economy. It fits our strategy to invest in a wide ranging portfolio of plant.

"The investment programme to refurbish the facilities will be structured to match developments in the business and economic environment. We will also be playing a major role in the operation and maintenance of the plant, as we do with the vast majority of our existing overseas assets."

The acquisition will bring National Power's interests in overseas power plants to over 11,000MW of capacity, with total investments of around 1.3 billion.

For further information, please contact Lynda Jenkins on 44-171/615-3912.

    CONTACT: National Power
              Lynda Jenkins, 44-171/615-3912