AUSTIN, Texas, July 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Sharyland Utilities, L.P.
announced today that it has filed a Statement of Interest with the Public
Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) to build electric transmission
facilities in the Texas Panhandle and South Plains as part of the
Competitive Renewable Energy Zone (CREZ) process. Specifically, Sharyland
Utilities has filed its interest in developing certain CREZ transmission
facilities located in the Texas Panhandle and South Plains that are not
currently in the transmission footprint or distribution service area of
another existing ERCOT utility.

    Sharyland Utilities filed this proposal as part of a Joint Statement of
Interest along with five other Texas transmission service providers (TSPs),
including: AEP Texas Central Company; AEP Texas North Company; Electric
Transmission Texas, LLC; LCRA Transmission Services Corporation; and Oncor
Electric Delivery Company, LLC.

    "We were an early proponent of extending the electric grid serving most
of Texas into the Panhandle and South Plains region when we submitted our
Panhandle Loop Proposal to the PUCT in February 2007," said Hunter Hunt,
President of Sharyland Utilities, L.P. "The PUCT's decision last week makes
that vision a reality, and we consider our joint proposal a great place to
start. We are committed to meeting the transmission needs in the Texas
Panhandle and South Plains for the long term."

    On July 17, 2008, the PUCT voted to authorize $4.93 billion in new
construction of electric transmission lines to accommodate 18,456 megawatts
of wind power from CREZ zones located in West Texas and the Texas Panhandle
and South Plains. Under the current procedural schedule, TSPs must file by
today their statements of interest in constructing these new transmission
lines. In today's joint filing, each company expressed an interest in
permitting, constructing, operating, and maintaining certain specific
transmission facilities as approved by the PUCT last week.

    "Sharyland Utilities has been an active and engaged participant
throughout this CREZ process, and we applaud the PUCT for approving such a
robust transmission plan for Texas," said Hunter Hunt. "We are pleased to
be working with AEP, ETT, Oncor, and LCRA to help expedite the timetable to
bring new wind generation resources on-line as quickly as possible."

    This joint proposal was filed under PUCT Docket No. 35665, Commission
Staff's Petition for the Selection of Entities Responsible for Transmission
Improvements Necessary to Deliver Renewable Energy from Competitive
Renewable Energy Zones.

    About Sharyland Utilities, L.P.

    Sharyland Utilities, L.P. is a privately-owned, Texas-based
transmission and distribution electric utility committed to providing
quality customer service, safe and reliable electric delivery, and
increased investment in the electric grid of Texas. It is a pure "wires
only" company that has been operating in South Texas in the cities of
Mission and McAllen for the past eight years and has no interests or
affiliations with Retail Electric Providers (REPs) or electric generation
in Texas. Sharyland Utilities has a proven record of bringing innovative
solutions to the ratepayers of Texas, including its underground and looped
distribution system, automated metering, and time-of-use tariffs. Sharyland
Utilities recently commissioned a 150 MW High Voltage Direct Current
Interconnection (DC tie) between the ERCOT grid of Texas and the Comision
Federal de Electricidad grid of Mexico, which allows for commercial
bidirectional electricity trade between the U.S. and Mexico. Sharyland
Utilities is owned by Hunter L. Hunt and other members of his family and
managed by Hunter L. Hunt.

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