SPOKANE, Wash, Oct 22, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Gary G. Ely, chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer for Avista Corp. (NYSE: AVA), has been elected to serve on the American Gas Association's Board of Directors.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19990629/AVALOGO )

As a member of AGA's Board of Directors, Ely will provide oversight and leadership to the association for a three-year term. In all, there are 47 AGA officers and board members.

Ely brings a strong background in the natural gas industry to the AGA board. During his nearly 37-year career with Avista, Ely has served as vice president of natural gas, responsible for the company's overall natural gas systems in Washington, Idaho, Oregon and California. Additionally, he has served as senior vice president where he oversaw wholesale marketing and resource management for both the electric and natural gas lines of business. Ely also serves on the board of directors of Avista Corp.'s subsidiaries Avista Energy and Avista Advantage.

Ely has also been active at the board level in other professional and business organizations serving the electric and natural gas industry, including the Edison Electric Institute and the Western Energy Institute. In addition he served on the executive board of the Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce.

A graduate of Brigham Young University, Ely has also participated in several executive-level courses including the Public Utilities Executive Course at the University of Idaho, post-graduate courses through the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Edison Electric Institute Leadership in Hershey and Kidder Peabody School of Financial Management. He also attended the Stanford School of Law's Director's College.

The American Gas Association represents 191 local energy utility companies that deliver natural gas to more than 53 million homes, businesses and industries throughout the United States. AGA member companies account for roughly 83 percent of all natural gas delivered by local natural gas distribution companies. AGA is an advocate for local natural gas utility companies and provides a broad range of programs and services for member natural gas pipelines, marketers, gatherers, international gas companies and industry associates.

Some of AGA's current priorities include passage of national energy policy legislation, maintaining the integrity and reliability of the natural gas delivery system, educating the financial community about the benefits of investing in publicly-traded natural gas utility companies and promoting innovative technologies that help homes and businesses use natural gas and other forms of energy more efficiently.

Natural gas meets one-fourth of the United States' energy needs and is the fastest growing major energy source.

Avista Corp. is an energy company involved in the production, transmission and distribution of energy as well as other energy-related businesses. Avista Utilities is a company operating division that provides electric and natural gas service to customers in four western states. Avista's non-regulated subsidiaries include Avista Advantage and Avista Energy. Avista Corp.'s stock is traded under the ticker symbol "AVA" and its Internet address is www.avistacorp.com.

NOTE: Avista Corp. and the Avista Corp. logo are trademarks of Avista Corporation. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE Avista Corp.

Debbie Simock of Avista Corp., +1-509-495-4174, or
debbie.simock@avistacorp.com
/Photo:  NewsCom:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19990629/AVALOGO
AP Archive:  http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, 1-888-776-6555 or +1-212-782-2840

http://www.avistacorp.com