(Poughkeepsie, NY) CH Energy Group (NYSE:CHG) earnings during the first quarter of 2007 climbed by 19 percent as compared to the same quarter of last year. Earnings per share for the first three months of 2007 totaled $1.38, versus $1.16 during the first quarter of 2006. As a result of the improved earnings, guidance for 2007 has been revised upward, with total earnings per share projected to be $2.55 to $2.80.

“We are particularly encouraged that 17 cents, or about 77 percent, of the increase in 2007 quarterly earnings came from our Central Hudson Enterprises Corporation businesses, with about 13 cents stemming from Griffith Energy Services, Inc., our fuel distribution businesses, and another 4 cents derived from our portfolio of renewable energy projects,” said Steven V. Lant, Chairman of the Board, President and C.E.O. “These results reflect our efforts to profitably invest in the competitive energy markets and to improve the operational effectiveness of the investments that we own or in which we partner.”

Lant outlined results per business segment:

Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation:

            Calmer weather and higher rates for delivering electricity and natural gas were the prime factors that improved earnings within utility subsidiary Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation, which contributed 83 cents during the quarter -- an increase of 2 cents over the same period of 2006. A decline in storms during the period reduced expenses associated with restoring electric service, and increased revenues stemming from a rate order issued last year contributed 18 cents to quarterly earnings. “We also saw a softening in the conservation trend that had been evidenced by our customers and actually saw an increase in weather-normalized sales growth during the period,” Lant said.

            Lant said it is now expected that Central Hudson will contribute between $1.90 and $2.00 to annual earnings, an increase of 10 cents from the earlier projection, reflecting the colder-than-normal weather in February and March 2007 that offset the negative impacts resulting from the warm weather experienced in December 2006 and January 2007.

Griffith Energy Services, Inc.

            “Well-timed oil company acquisitions added an estimated 6 cents per share during the quarter, and increased margins on petroleum sales and services added another 9 cents, as compared to last year’s results within Griffith,” Lant said, noting that Griffith earned 40 cents during the first quarter, up from 27 cents during the first three months of 2006. “The colder weather during the quarter also had a positive impact on Griffith’s performance,” he said.

In all, 12 acquisitions have been made since the first quarter of 2006, expanding Griffith's customer count by 19 percent to more than 100,000 as it increased its market share and entered a new market in Rhode Island.

            As a result of the segment’s strong quarterly performance, the Company has increased its estimates of annual earnings from Griffith by 5 cents to a total of between 25 and 30 cents.

Other Businesses & Investments

            Quarterly earnings for other businesses and investments, including the Company’s renewable energy portfolio, totaled 15 cents during the quarter, nearly doubling the results of the same period of 2006. A favorable tax adjustment, earnings from the Cornhusker Energy Lexington ethanol plant and investments in two wind energy projects all contributed positively to the quarterly results.

            Lant reiterated the Company’s belief that annual earnings for its other businesses should total between 40 and 50 cents for 2007, and stated that he now projects that consolidated earnings per share for all business units will total between $2.55 and $2.80.

About CH Energy Group, Inc.

With nearly 470,000 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 367,000 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 distribution and renewable energy.  Griffith Energy Service’s fuel distribution business supplies energy products and services to more than 100,000 customers in nine states, stretching from Rhode Island 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.

Conference Call:  Mr. Lant will conduct a conference call with investors to review financial results at 2:00 p.m. (ET) today, April 27, 2007.  Dial-in: 1-888-428-4480; Conference Name “CH Energy Group.”  Supplemental materials are available here to assist participants in following the Conference Call presentation.  A digitized replay of the call will be available from 7:15 p.m. (ET) on April 27, 2007, until 11:59 p.m. (ET) on May 4, 2007, by dialing 1-800-475-6701 and entering access code #870500. In addition, the call will be webcast live in listen-only mode and available for replay for approximately 30 days within the Investor Relations section of the Company’s Web site at www.CHEnergyGroup.com

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,” “seeds,” 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-0looking 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.