FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 14, 2001

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Julia Van De Water, Manager NIPSCO Communications (219) 647-6375

MERRILLVILLE, Ind. - Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) announced today that two new natural gas delivery stations were recently installed and a third is scheduled to be in service in January. The three new stations, under construction since spring 2001, tie two new natural gas pipelines built through northwest Indiana into NIPSCO's natural gas pipeline system. The two new pipelines join six existing pipelines in northern Indiana for a total of eight.

When combined, the three stations have the capacity to deliver a total of 1.145 billion cubic feet (Bcf) per day through NIPSCO's system, or enough to serve approximately 650,000 homes.

"These new stations will provide three new sources of natural gas to northern Indiana and will benefit all NIPSCO customers by providing additional supplies and keeping costs competitive," said Bob Schacht, NIPSCO vice president and chief operating officer.

The first of the stations was put into service in early November. The station is located just northwest of Crown Point, Ind. and ties into the Vector Pipeline. The Vector Pipeline originates near Joliet, Ill. and provides access to both Canadian and Gulf of Mexico supply basins. The pipeline then continues through Indiana and Michigan and ends near Dawn, Ontario, Canada.

Construction on a second interconnect with the Vector Pipeline is nearing completion in LaPorte north of the Indiana toll road, and is expected to be fully operational in January.

The third station will be activated in mid-December. The station is located in a rural area west of Lowell, Ind. and is connected to the Northern Border Pipeline, a new pipeline from western Canada.

Schacht stated that the cost for natural gas is passed directly to NIPSCO customers, without any markup. Actual gas costs incurred by NIPSCO are then recovered each month through the gas cost adjustment and provided to customers in their monthly bill.

"Our goal is to provide our customers with a safe, reliable supply of natural gas at the lowest possible cost," said Schacht. "These new interconnects and additional sources for natural gas support that goal."

NIPSCO, with headquarters in Merrillville, Ind., is one of the 10 energy distribution companies of NiSource Inc. (NYSE: NI). With approximately 700,000 natural gas customers and 430,000 electric customers across the northern third of Indiana, NIPSCO is the largest natural gas distribution company, and the second largest electric distribution company, in the state. NiSource distribution companies serve 3.6 million natural gas and electric customers primarily in nine states. More information about NIPSCO is available at www.nipsco.com.