CH Energy Group Conducts Annual Meeting of Shareholders

(Poughkeepsie, NY) 
Shareholders gathered in Poughkeepsie, New York, today for the 78^th Annual Meeting of CH Energy Group, Inc., a 450,000-customer energy company with holdings in 10 states. Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer Steven V. Lant provided more than 100 stockholders with a comprehensive status report and answered questions regarding the operations and investments of the parent company and its two primary subsidiaries, Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation and Central Hudson Enterprises Corporation (CHEC).

Lant called 2005 "a good year," and explained that the $2.81 cents of earnings per share posted last year represented a 4.5 percent increase over 2004 results, despite the expiration of 46 cents (or about 17 percent) worth of regulatory provisions. "The loss of those regulatory items was more than offset by growth in our customer base and rate base at Central Hudson, by an increase in profitability of our operations at our Griffith fuel distribution subsidiary, and by the favorable conclusion of prior-year tax audits," Lant explained.

He also discussed the recent rate agreement that has been reached between Central Hudson, the Staff of the New York State Public Service Commission and other parties, and which is subject to approval by the PSC sometime this summer. Lant explained that the agreement, while not providing everything the utility sought, does offer many benefits:  "An enhanced program for low-income customers will be created; funding for our tree-trimming program is at a level that will meet the PSC’s transmission trimming standards and allow the company’s distribution program to be increased to improve electric reliability. Funds to begin our MGP (Manufactured Gas Plant) remediation program are also provided for.  And, importantly, during the next three years we will invest $235 million to meet the growing energy demands of the Hudson Valley.

"We also expect there to be an opportunity for Central Hudson to earn a fair return for you, the shareholders, on this expanding investment base," he said.

Lant updated shareholders on their investments in the Cornhusker Energy Lexington ethanol plant, recent fuel distribution company acquisitions, and an upstate New York biomass plant that burns wood chips to generate electricity. A short videotaped presentation featured CH Energy Group's recent investment in two wind farm projects, one in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and the second in Bear Creek, Pennsylvania.

The complete text of the Lant's prepared remarks can be found here, as well as a web cast of the Annual Meeting.  During the meeting, shareholders elected three members to the Board of Directors: Manuel J. Iraola, E. Michel Kruse, and Ernest R. Verebelyi for terms that will expire in 2009. They also ratified the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as CH Energy Group's independent auditor for 2006 and adopted the corporation's Long-Term Equity Incentive Plan.

About CH Energy Group, Inc.

With nearly 450,000 customers, CH Energy Group, Inc. is a family of companies seizing new opportunities in the energy marketplace through two primary subsidiaries:  Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation is a regulated transmission and distribution utility serving approximately 363,500 customers in eight counties of New York State's Mid-Hudson River Valley, and delivering natural gas and electricity in a 2,600-square-mile service territory that extends from the suburbs of metropolitan New York City north to the Capital District at Albany. Central Hudson Enterprises Corporation, a non-regulated subsidiary, is the umbrella for a family of energy-related companies and investments focused primarily on fuel oil distribution and renewable energy. CHEC's fuel distribution business supplies energy products and services to more than 85,000 customers in seven states, stretching from Connecticut to the Washington, D.C. area. CHEC also has interests in a Lexington, Neb., ethanol plant, two wind power projects, and a biomass plant in upstate New York.

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Forward-Looking Statements

     Statements included in this news release, including documents incorporated by reference that are not historical in nature, are intended to be, and are hereby identified as, "forward-looking statements" for purposes of the safe harbor provided by Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words including "anticipates," "believes," "projects," "intends," “estimates," "expects," "plans," "assumes," "seeks," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements including, without limitation, those relating to CH Energy Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries' future business prospects, revenues, proceeds, working capital, liquidity, income and margins, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements, due to several important factors including those identified from time to time in the forward-looking statements. Those factors include, but are not limited to: weather; energy supply and demand; fuel prices; interest rates; potential future acquisitions; developments in the legislative, regulatory and competitive environment; market risks; electric and gas industry restructuring and cost recovery; the ability to obtain adequate and timely rate relief; changes in fuel supply or costs; the success of strategies to satisfy electricity requirements now that Central Hudson's major electric generation assets have been sold; future market prices for energy, capacity, and ancillary services; the outcome of pending litigation and certain environmental matters, particularly the status of inactive hazardous waste disposal sites and waste site remediation requirements; and certain presently unknown or unforeseen factors, including, but not limited to, acts of terrorism.  CH Energy Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.  Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements.