Contact Information: Investor Contacts: Cleco Corporation: Ryan Gunter (318) 484-7724 Shareholder Services: Rodney J. Hamilton (318) 484-7593 Analyst Inquiries: Dresner Companies Kristine Walczak (312) 726-3600 Media Contact: Cleco Corporation Robbyn Cooper (318) 484-7136
Cleco Power Enters Into Agreement for Geothermal Study
| Source: Cleco Corp.
PINEVILLE, LA--(Marketwire - August 9, 2007) - Cleco Power LLC, a subsidiary of Cleco Corp.
(NYSE : CNL ), recently entered into a Cooperative Research and Development
Agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Engineer Research and
Development Center (ERDC) to study the potential for geothermal energy in
Louisiana.
"This study will help determine the viability of geothermal energy for
electricity production in Louisiana," said Dilek Samil, president and COO
of Cleco Power LLC. "We are excited about the possibilities this study
could bring and the opportunity to research alternative ways to produce
power."
Cleco Power will fund the study to pursue renewable energy supplies, and
the ERDC will provide expertise to determine where potential geothermal
energy resources suitable for power generation are located.
"Researching nontraditional sources such as geothermal energy is part of
our ongoing strategy to seek responsible ways to supply reliable,
economical and environmentally friendly power to our customers," said
Samil.
"ERDC is very pleased to partner with Cleco Power in this effort to augment
electrical power with geothermal energy found in Louisiana," said Dr. Jason
McKenna, technical lead for the ERDC research team. "We believe that this
partnership represents an important first step toward exploiting
potentially large, untapped reservoirs of geothermally derived electrical
energy, as well as strengthening energy independence for the nation."
Cleco Corp. is a regional energy company headquartered in Pineville, La.
It operates a regulated electric utility company that serves 268,000
customers across Louisiana. Cleco also operates a wholesale energy business
with approximately 1,350 megawatts of generating capacity. For more
information about Cleco, visit www.cleco.com.