LAS VEGAS, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sierra Pacific Resources
(NYSE: SRP) today announced that Dennis E. Wheeler has resigned as a member of
the company's board of directors.
    Wheeler, 61, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Idaho-
based Coeur d'Alene Mines Corporation, had served on Sierra Pacific's board
since 1990.
    "My resignation, reached after serious deliberation, is based on my belief
that I do not have a sufficient amount of time available to effectively
perform the responsibilities of board membership," Wheeler said.  "The present
opportunities and resulting time commitment associated with my
responsibilities as chairman of Coeur d'Alene have significantly increased and
led me to this decision."
    Walter Higgins, chairman and CEO of Sierra Pacific Resources, said,
"Dennis Wheeler's important contributions to our company during both good and
difficult times over many years have been, and are, greatly appreciated by me
personally, as well as our board and management team.  He was always an active
and conscientious board member, most recently serving as chairman of the audit
committee.  We certainly understand the time constraints that led him to this
decision.  Dennis will be missed and we wish him the very best."
    Sierra Pacific Resources now has eight board members that include seven
independent outside directors.

    Headquartered in Nevada, Sierra Pacific Resources is a holding company
whose principal subsidiaries are Nevada Power Company, the electric utility
for most of southern Nevada, and Sierra Pacific Power Company, the electric
utility for most of northern Nevada and the Lake Tahoe area of California.
Sierra Pacific Power Company also distributes natural gas in the Reno-Sparks
area of northern Nevada.  Other subsidiaries include the Tuscarora Gas
Pipeline Company, which owns 50 percent interest in an interstate natural gas
transmission partnership and several unregulated energy services companies.

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