March 1, 2000

Thomas Stevens

NIPSCO Communications Manager

(219) 647-6375

Ryan Soultz

IURC Public Information Director

(317) 232-2297

Jo Lynn Ewing

OUCC Public Information Officer

(317) 233-2747

MERRILLVILLE, Ind. – Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), a subsidiary of NiSource Inc., announced today an increase in its gas cost adjustment (GCA) for March 2000.

This adjustment, which was approved subject to refund by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC), represents a 3.2 percent increase in a typical residential customer’s bill from February 2000 and a 17.9 percent increase when compared with March 1999. NIPSCO’s business and commercial gas customers will see similar impacts on their March billing statements.

For example, a typical NIPSCO residential customer using 150 therms of natural gas during March should expect a $2.70 increase in their March billing statement when compared to last month and a $13.43 increase when compared to March last year.

The March GCA increase is the result of higher market natural gas prices due to lower storage levels of natural gas in North America and forecasts for increased demand nationally to support the growing electric generation market. Natural gas market prices for the first quarter, on average, have been between 25 and 50 percent higher than during the same period last year. In 1999, near record supply inventories in North America and lower than expected consumer demand due to a warmer than normal winter resulted in below average market prices.

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NIPSCO, which is committed to providing its customers with reliable natural gas supplies at the lowest possible cost, continuously seeks to ease the effect of market price fluctuations by improving its purchase contracts and lowering its storage and transmission costs.

The GCA is an allowed monthly adjustment to the gas supply charge portion of NIPSCO’s natural gas service rates. The adjustment, which must be approved by the IURC, reflects the fluctuations in the price NIPSCO pays in the marketplace for natural gas. The company passes on the costs of the natural gas directly to the customer without any markup.

Aside from the gas supply charge, the other components of NIPSCO’s monthly gas statements include service costs for gas delivery, and state and local taxes. These service costs, which are also regulated by the IURC, are not changing and have remained steady since 1988.

For natural gas customers who are more comfortable with price stability, NIPSCO continues to offer its Budget Plan as an option to stabilize their monthly gas bill.

Customers may also inquire about similar pricing options with the qualified suppliers participating in the NIPSCO Choice program. Under the NIPSCO Choice program, customers have an opportunity to choose an alternative natural gas supplier.

For additional information or questions about NIPSCO’s adjustment to its gas supply charge, the NIPSCO Choice program, or any of NIPSCO’s products or services, call (800) 4-NIPSCO, 24 hours-a-day, to speak with a NIPSCO customer service representative.

Customers may also contact the Indiana Office of the Utility Consumer Counselor toll-free at (888) 441-2494, or visit their website at www.state.in.us/oucc. The OUCC is the state agency that represents the interests of Indiana consumers in matters related to the provision of utility services.

The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) may be contacted toll-free at (800) 851-4268, or visit the their website at www.state.in.us/iurc. An advocate of neither the public nor the utilities, the IURC is required by state statute to make decisions that balances the interests of all parties to ensure that utilities provide adequate and reliable service at reasonable prices.

Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), a subsidiary of NiSource Inc., is a regulated utility that provides natural gas to nearly 700,000 customers and electricity to 416,000 customers across the northern third of Indiana. NIPSCO is the largest natural gas distribution company and the second largest electric distribution company in Indiana. Information about NiSource Inc. and its subsidiaries is available via the Internet at www.nisource.com.

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