NU: Eighth Consecutive Year of Above Industry Average Dividend Increases

nu.com - May 13, 2008

(PRNewsChannel) / Berlin, Conn. - This morning as part of the 42nd Annual Meeting of the shareholders of Northeast Utilities (NYSE:NU), Charles W. Shivery, NU's chairman, president and chief executive officer, announced the company's eighth consecutive dividend increase and discussed the benefits of major transmission projects to help address New England's pressing energy needs.

Shivery reported that the Board of Trustees approved a 6.25 percent increase in NU's common dividend, increasing the annualized rate of $0.80 to $0.85 per share. NU declared a common dividend of $0.2125 per share payable on September 30, 2008, to shareholders of record as of September 1, 2008. In April, NU declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share payable on June 30, 2008, to shareholders of record as of June 1, 2008.

"This dividend increase is based on our continued confidence in our future earnings and growth prospects and is a key part of the competitive total return we seek to provide to shareholders," Shivery said. As the operator of New England's largest energy delivery system, NU is engaged in a 5-year, $6 billion dollar construction program - the company's largest-ever investment in transmission, distribution and generation infrastructure -- to improve the reliability of the region's energy delivery system.

"New England is at a crossroads of significant energy and environmental challenges that demand a portfolio of solutions," Shivery said. "NU is committing resources to develop those solutions and is willing to commit significant capital to implement them to benefit our customers and shareholders. For example, we believe that new transmission facilities, which we have a strong track record of success in building, will help unlock the renewable resource potential of northern New England and allow access to non- carbon emitting resources in Canada."

In addition to pursuing these new proposed solutions, Shivery said he looks forward to the completion and operation of over $1.6 billion in transmission infrastructure improvements in southwest Connecticut. They include:


-- The 11-mile Long Island Replacement Cable project under Long Island
Sound
-- The 115-kV Glenbrook Cables transmission project between Norwalk and
Stamford, Connecticut
-- The 69-mile, 345-kV Middletown to Norwalk, Connecticut, transmission
project now expected to be completed in early 2009

Shivery also highlighted the momentum that carried into 2008 with the
completion of other major projects:


-- Yankee Gas' $108 million, 1.2 bcf liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage
and production facility which helped protect customers from higher gas
costs this past winter.
-- Public Service Company of New Hampshire's 50-megawatt, wood-burning
boiler, a renewable energy resource that has already injected $14
million into the local economy through the purchase of local wood and
displaced the burning of 150,000 tons of coal.
-- The first full year of service of the Bethel to Norwalk, 345-kV
transmission line, which reduced congestion costs in Connecticut by
more than $150 million -- nearly 45 percent of the cost of the project.

"We have proven we can deliver results, and we will continue to do so to the benefit of both our customers and shareholders," Shivery said.

This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are statements of future expectations and not facts. Actual results or developments might differ materially from those included in the forward-looking statements because of factors such as competition and industry restructuring, changes in economic conditions, changes in historical weather patterns, changes in laws, regulations or regulatory policies, developments in legal or public policy doctrines, technological developments and other presently unknown or unforeseen factors. Other risk factors are detailed from time to time in NU's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Northeast Utilities (NYSE: NU), a Fortune 500 energy company based in
Connecticut, operates New England's largest energy delivery system. NU is committed to safety, reliability, environmental leadership and stewardship,
and expanding energy options for its more than 2 million electricity and natural gas customers. For more information on Northeast Utilities and our
subsidiaries, visit the NU family of Web sites at http://www.nu.com.

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Source Web Site: nu.com