Powering Industry in Western Australia: TransAlta Announces Long-term Contract Extension with a major mining company in Western Australia

PERTH, AUSTRALIA--(Marketwired - Oct. 30, 2013) - TransAlta Corporation (TSX:TA)(NYSE:TAC) announced today it has extended a contract to supply power to the BHP Billiton (ASX:BHP) Nickel West operations in Western Australia.

"TransAlta has specialized in providing reliable energy supply to remote mining operations in Western Australia for over 15-years. This contract extension highlights both our ability to build long-term successful relationships with our customers as well as our commitment to the Western Australia market."

TransAlta has been in operation in Western Australia since 1996, and has been a contributor to the economic growth of the region as one of its primary power suppliers.

This agreement extends the contract for four power stations, with a total installed capacity of 245MW at Kambalda, Mt. Keith, Leinster and Kalgoorlie. The assets supply power to BHP Billiton's extensive nickel mining and processing operations in the region. Western Australia is a core market for TransAlta where it has developed behind-the-fence expertise with resource operators within the region.

TransAlta is a power generation and wholesale marketing company focused on creating long-term shareholder value. TransAlta maintains a low-to-moderate risk profile by operating a highly contracted portfolio of assets in Canada, the United States and Australia. TransAlta's focus is to efficiently operate geothermal, wind, hydro, natural gas and coal facilities in order to provide customers with a reliable, low-cost source of power. For over 100 years, TransAlta has been a responsible operator and a proud contributor to the communities in which it works and lives. TransAlta has been selected by Jantzi-Sustainalytics as one of Canada's Top 50 Socially Responsible Companies since 2009 and is recognized globally for its leadership on sustainability and corporate responsibility standards by FTSE4Good.

This news release may contain forward looking statements, including statements regarding the business and anticipated financial performance of TransAlta Corporation. These statements are based on TransAlta Corporation's belief and assumptions based on information available at the time the assumption was made. These statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Some of the factors that could cause such differences include legislative or regulatory developments, competition, global capital markets activity, changes in prevailing interest rates, currency exchange rates, inflation levels, commodity prices and general economic conditions in geographic areas where TransAlta Corporation operates.