GPU subsidiary Energy Initiatives to acquire half ownership of Solaris Power Ltd., an electricity distribution business in Australia.

Utilities Corp. (NYSE:GPU), through its subsidiary, Energy Initiatives Inc. (EI) has agreed to acquire 50 percent ownership of Solaris Power Ltd. (Solaris), an electricity distribution business in Melbourne, State of Victoria, Australia.

Solaris, which provides electric service to more than 230,000 customers in northwestern Melbourne, is being sold as part of the Government of Victoria's privatization of the state's electric industry.

GPU will acquire Solaris in a consortium with the Australian Gas Light Company (AGL), the largest private gas utility in Australia. GPU and AGL will each own 50% of Solaris and have equal representation on the board of directors. The purchase price of Solaris is A$950 million (US$712.5 million) including the repayment of outstanding debt obligations. Funding will be provided by debt and equity; GPU and AGL will each invest A$145 million (US$109 million).

"The acquisition of Solaris underscores GPU's commitment to grow its core business in regions domestically and abroad where we can improve our value to our shareholders," said James R. Leva, chairman, president and chief executive officer of GPU.

"The prospects for growth in the Australian economy provide GPU with a great opportunity to diversify our future revenue sources while keeping to our core business," Leva said.

Solaris's service territory includes approximately 950 square km (590 square miles) with 5,840 km (3,629 miles) of power lines. Sales revenue of Solaris last year was A$367.8 million (US$276 million) on sales of 3,330 Gwh.

AGL is Australia's largest publicly listed gas distributor, supplying natural gas to more than 700,000 customers in the State of New South Wales. AGL also owns and operates 4,900 km (3,045 miles) of natural gas transmission pipelines throughout Australia, an LPG supply business serving 500,000 customers in Australia and a natural gas distributor in New Zealand. AGL has net assets of A$1.6 billion (US$1.2 billion) and has more than 2,200 employees.

"This acquisition is the first non-generation asset for EI's expanding domestic and international portfolio," said Bruce L. Levy, EI president. "Solaris Power provides us with a valuable distribution asset that will complement our 16 domestic and international generation projects that have a capacity of 2,173 megawatts."

Last week, EI announced that it had completed the financing to fund the acquisition of the existing 240-megawatt Termobarranquilla power plant and begin construction of a new 750-megawatt facility adjacent to the existing plant in Barranquilla, Colombia. The Termobarranquilla project is the largest independent power project in Colombia.

A registered utility holding company, GPU recorded 1994 operating revenues of US$3.65 billion. Its three operating utility subsidiaries - Metropolitan Edison, Pennsylvania Electric and Jersey Central Power & Light - serve some 1.9 million customers in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

GPU's other subsidiaries are GPU Service Corp., a service company, and GPU Nuclear Corp., which operates and maintains GPU's nuclear generation facilities.

CONTACT: Patrick Dool, 201/263-6951