December 29, 2003 (Portland, Ore.) — The Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF) announced today the installation of a new solar energy system at a public school in Castleford, Idaho.

The Castleford system is the fifth in a series of Solar for Schools projects that demonstrate how solar power can work within communities of the Pacific Northwest. The 1.1 kilowatt system at the Castleford School is paired with an educational curriculum that allows students to use live data from the solar panels mounted on the school's roof. The energy from the system will be incorporated into Idaho Power's Green Power product.

"Thirty years ago recycling was a new idea, and look where it is now,"said Angus Duncan, President of BEF. "Solar power's ability to alleviate the pollution caused by fossil fuel-based electricity generation has that same promise. Our Solar for Schools projects are designed to get young people thinking about how energy is produced and delivered and to consider the impact of their energy choices."

The Castleford system was developed at no financial cost to the school and is not the result of a typical grant. It is the tangible outcome of a partnership between Idaho Power and BEF that connects customer support of Idaho Power's Green Power Program with a real increase in local renewable energy sources.

"We've set up a program that connects people with renewable energy projects that mean something to them locally," said Theresa Drake, the manager of Idaho Power's Green Power Program.

BEF's Solar for Schools program kicked off in December of 2002 at the West Salem High School in Salem, Oregon. Since then, Solar for School's combined approach of delivering solar systems and educational curriculum has demonstrated the importance of renewable energy to hundreds of students across Oregon, Washington, and now Idaho.

BEF supplies Idaho Power's Green Power Program with BEF Green Tags drawn from new Northwest wind energy facilities. BEF's watershed restoration and renewable energy programs—including its Solar for Schools work—is funded from the organization's Green Tag sales.

About BEF
The Bonneville Environmental Foundation, a non-profit organization, was established in 1998 to restore watershed ecosystems and further the development and use of new renewable energy resources. Through revenues generated from the sales of green power products, BEF funds projects that restore damaged watersheds and support new renewable energy projects from solar, wind and biomass. BEF pioneered the sale of Green Tags in 2000 and has helped establish national standards for certification and trading. Created by regional environmental groups and the Bonneville Power Administration, the Foundation operates collaboratively with but independent of both.

About Idaho Power
Idaho Power is a subsidiary of Boise, Idaho-based IDACORP (NYSE:IDA). The investor-owned utility provides electrical service to more than 400,000 residential, irrigation and commercial customers in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon in a 20,000-square-mile service area. The company owns and operates 17 hydroelectric generating projects on the Snake River or its tributaries.

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