CV Central Vermont Public Service Corp.

Catamount Energy Corp. (Catamount) announced the initial close and funding of the previously announced transaction with Diamond Castle Holdings LLC and its affiliated funds (Diamond Castle). Central Vermont Public Service (CVPS), previously the 100 percent owner of Catamount, agreed to sell a controlling interest in Catamount to Diamond Castle, a private equity investment firm. On Oct. 31, Diamond Castle invested $16 million into Catamount. Diamond Castle has committed to fund an additional $46.5 million into Catamount. As part of the transaction, Mike Ranger, Ari Benacerraf, and Daniel Clare of Diamond Castle have joined Catamount's board of directors. CVPS has the option to remain a 49 percent owner in Catamount or, under certain circumstances, to sell its entire ownership interest in Catamount to Diamond Castle, in which case the sales proceeds would be paid directly to CVPS. Unless CVPS exercises its option to sell its remaining stake in Catamount, the funds invested by Diamond Castle will be invested directly into Catamount to grow the company's wind business. "We have been looking for the right partner and we are very happy to have Diamond Castle as our new investor alongside CVPS and the management team," said James Moore, the CEO of Catamount. "With adequate capital in place we can focus all our efforts on executing the business plan and growing the wind energy project pipeline in the U.S. and the UK." "CVPS is reaping the benefits of our commitment to Catamount," said Robert Young, the CEO of CVPS. "We are working with our Board to decide whether the best interests of our shareholders will be served by holding a 49 percent stake in the business or by completing the full sale of the business to Diamond Castle by March of 2006." "At Diamond Castle, we are pleased to have Catamount Energy as our first investment," said Mike Ranger, a senior managing director. "Now we look forward to supporting the management team as it continues to build Catamount." Diamond Castle Holdings, LLC is a private equity firm founded in September 2004. Lawrence Schloss, the former chairman of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette's and Credit Suisse First Boston's successful private equity business, is the CEO of Diamond Castle. Diamond Castle has 21 employees located in New York and focuses on investments in the power, financial services, media and telecom, and healthcare sectors. Catamount, the non-regulated subsidiary of CVPS (NYSE: CV), has been in the business of providing clean, cost-competitive electricity in the U.S. and Europe for over 15 years. Catamount is a developer, owner, and operator of wind energy projects. CVPS is a Vermont-based electric utility serving 151,000 customers. More information regarding Diamond Castle and Catamount is available on their web sites at www.diamondcastleholdings.com and www.catenergy.com, respectively. This press release includes statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements, usually containing the words "believe," "estimate," "project," "expect," or similar expressions. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, future trends in wind and other projects, acceptance of the Companies' products and services in the marketplace, competitive factors, dependence upon third-party vendors, and other risks. By making these forward-looking statements, the Companies undertake no obligation to update these statements for revision or changes after the date of this release.