Houston, Texas, October 22, 1998 -El Paso Energy International Company, a business unit of El Paso Energy Corporation (NYSE:EPG), along with partners Ogden Energy Group and Wartsila NSD North America, Inc., commenced construction on a 115-megawatt oil and gas-fired power generation facility in Haripur, Bangladesh.

El Paso Energy International will own a 50-percent share in the $120 million project, which is expected to be in service by the end of May 1999. The plant will sell power to the Bangladesh Power Development Board under a fifteen-year power purchase agreement.

"We are pleased to be a part of the Haripur project, which is only the second private power plant to be constructed in Bangladesh," said John Hushon, president of El Paso Energy International Company. "The region is experiencing critical power shortages. We are working closely with Ogden and Wartsila to expedite construction of the facility so we can get power to the people who live in and around Dhaka."

With over $10 billion in assets, El Paso Energy Corporation provides energy solutions through five business units: Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company, El Paso Natural Gas Company, El Paso Field Services Company, El Paso Energy Marketing Company, and El Paso Energy International Company. The company owns the nation's only integrated coast-to-coast natural gas pipeline system and has operations in interstate natural gas transmission, gas gathering and processing, energy marketing, and international infrastructure development.

This release includes forward-looking statements and projections, made in reliance on the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The companies have made every reasonable effort to ensure that the information and assumptions on which these statements and projections are based are current, reasonable, and complete. However, a variety of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the projections, anticipated results or other expectations expressed in this release. While the companies make these statements and projections in good faith, neither the companies nor their managements can guarantee that the anticipated future results will be achieved. Reference should be made to the companies' (and their affiliates') Securities and Exchange Commission filings for additional important factors that may affect actual results.