September 12, 2007

Maine and New Brunswick Power Lines Connect at St. Croix River

Bangor, ME-Bangor Hydro Electric Company and New Brunswick Power Transmission have reached another milestone in the Northeast Reliability Interconnect (NRI) and the International Power Line (IPL) transmission projects. The two sections of the new power line have been connected at the St. Croix River, near Baileyville.

Bangor Hydro is building an 85 mile long line to create a second connection between the New England and the Maritime Canada electric systems. The new line will improve the reliability and efficiency of the system. It will also increase marketing of electric power between New England and New Brunswick. It will operate at 345,000 volts and carry as much as 700 megawatts of power, enough to supply about a third of the state's power requirements at peak usage time.

New Brunswick Power is building the 60 miles of connecting line on the Canadian side.

"This project is an important one as it enables NB Power to work closer with our American partners and further develop and enhance the reliable and efficient operation of the transmission grid," stated Darrell Clark, NB Power Project Manager.

"The electric transmission system shouldn't be limited to the national border," said Bangor Hydro Project Manager Gerry Chasse. "Much like our highway system, this is a critical connection between the two countries that allows us to take advantage of the diversity between the two systems."

Construction is progressing well and is on schedule to reach the target completion date later this year.

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.