SPOKANE, Wash., May 17, 2004 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- The board of directors of Avista Corp. (NYSE: AVA) has elected Don Kopczynski vice president, with responsibilities for the company's electric and natural gas transmission and distribution operations. Kopczynski, a 25-year employee, most recently served as general manager of energy delivery for Avista Utilities.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040128/SFW031LOGO )

In his new role, Kopczynski will be responsible for all aspects of energy delivery for Avista Utilities' 325,000 electric and 300,000 natural gas customers.

Kopczynski, a Cottonwood, Idaho, native, began his career with Avista in 1979 as an electrical engineer and has served in a variety of management positions throughout the company. His experience includes leadership roles within Avista subsidiaries, where he served as president of Avista Fiber and director of engineering at Avista Labs, now ReliOn.

"Don brings years of leadership experience along with strong operational and technical expertise to our management team," said Gary G. Ely, Avista Corp. board chairman, president and chief executive officer. "His leadership skills will be an asset as we invest in infrastructure to meet our region's future energy needs and as we look for ways to serve our customers more effectively and efficiently to ensure they continue to receive the best value for their energy dollar."

Kopczynski is a graduate of the University of Idaho, where he earned a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering. In addition, he earned a master's degree in business management from Washington State University and a master's degree in organizational leadership from Gonzaga University.

Active in the community, Kopczynski serves on the Eastern Washington University Foundation Board, the Washington State University engineering executive advisory board, the University of Idaho Research Park advisory board and the board of the Spokane Second Harvest Food Bank.

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.

media, Patrick Lynch, +1-509-495-4246,
pat.lynch@avistacorp.com, or investors, Angela Teed, +1-509-495-2930, or
angela.teed@avistacorp.com, both of Avista Corp.
/Photo:  NewsCom:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040128/SFW031LOGO
AP Archive:  http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com

http://www.avistacorp.com