Bill Babcock Returns to Charles River Associates; Energy Expert Rejoins the Firm's Boston Headquarters as Vice President.

Business/Technology Editors

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 20, 2001

Charles River Associates Incorporated (NASDAQ:CRAI), an internationally known leader in providing economic, financial, and management consulting services, announced today that Bill Babcock, former vice president in the firm's Energy Practice, has returned to CRA's Boston office to resume his position in the newly created Energy Restructuring and Strategy Practice.

James C. Burrows, president and CEO of Charles River Associates, said, "I am pleased to welcome Bill Babcock back to CRA and to our energy practice in particular. Bill will once again team with CRA's seasoned energy staff to further develop our growing practice in electricity market restructuring and to extend the firm's capabilities in this and other energy specialties around the world."

With more than 25 years of experience in consulting and economic research in the energy industry, Bill Babcock is well prepared to assist clients confronting the challenges created by the radical changes taking place in the electric power and fuels markets. He has conducted a wide variety of strategic planning, market, financial, and technology assessments for clients in both the private and public sectors. Mr. Babcock also pioneered the application of a state-of-the-art modeling system that blends generation and transmission system operations to replicate the real-world function of the U.S. electricity grid. This system quantifies the monetary impact of transmission congestion, allowing it to be incorporated into the overall valuation of generation assets. Prior to rejoining CRA, Mr. Babcock was a vice president of PA Consulting Group.

Founded in 1965, CRA is a leading provider of sophisticated economic and financial consulting services, expert testimony and litigation support, and business consulting. The firm's areas of expertise include auctions, antitrust, mergers and acquisitions, policy impact assessments, corporate finance, strategy and business operations, and regulatory economics. CRA has advised legal and corporate clients, government agencies, and other organizations in thousands of engagements. In addition to its corporate headquarters in Boston and international offices in London, Melbourne, Mexico City, Toronto, and Wellington, CRA also has U.S. offices in Berkeley/Oakland, College Station, Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Salt Lake City, and Washington, D.C. More information about the Company can be found on its Web site at www.crai.com.

Statements in this press release concerning Mr. Babcock's ability to further develop CRA's growing practice in utility restructuring are "forward-looking" statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are based on management's current expectations and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties. Information contained in these forward-looking statements is inherently uncertain, and actual performance and results may differ materially. Such factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statements made by the Company include, among others, the ability of the Company to successfully integrate Mr. Babcock into its practice, start-up costs associated with opening new office locations, dependence on key personnel, attracting and retaining qualified consultants, dependence on outside experts, intense competition, and professional liability. Further information on factors that could affect the Company's financial results is included in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.