50 Percent of Pacifica Papers Hydro Facilities To Be Acquired by Great Lakes Hydro Income Fund

- The Fund will acquire the power assets located in Powell River, British Columbia for a total consideration of $113 million. All of the energy produced by the facilities will be sold to Pacifica Papers pursuant to a 10 year take or pay Power Purchase Agreement.

Great Lakes Power Inc., which owns 50% of the outstanding units of the Fund, will continue to be a strong sponsor of the newly acquired facilities by guaranteeing the price of the electricity produced by the facilities. In addition, Great Lakes, through its wholly owned subsidiary Maclaren Energy Inc, will operate and manage the facilities and provide sales, marketing and dispatch services on a cost recovery basis under a 20 year contract.

"This acquisition is consistent with the Fund's growth strategy and objective to increase the distribution to unitholders by acquiring competitive low cost, environmentally preferred hydroelectric facilities in attractive markets", confirmed Mr. Richard Legault, President and CEO of the Fund. Mr. Legault also added that these facilities will diversify the watersheds in which the Fund operates and provide stable and sustainable cash flow to unitholders.

The transaction is scheduled to close in the fourth quarter of 2000 and is projected to add approximately 4 cents per unit to the Fund's annual distributions. After the transaction, the Fund will own or have interests in a total 320 MW of low cost hydroelectric generation in watersheds in Quebec and B.C.