Houston, Texas, October 25, 1999-El Paso Energy Corporation (NYSE:EPG) announced today that Patricia A. Shelton will be promoted and assume the position of President of El Paso Natural Gas Company, effective January 1, 2000.

Ms. Shelton began her career with El Paso Natural Gas in 1980 shortly after she graduated from the University of Texas at El Paso, where she earned both a bachelor's and a master's degree in business administration. She has held a number of positions with increasing responsibility during the past 19 years, including Rates, Financial Forecast and Planning, and Settlement Compliance. Ms. Shelton was named vice president, Rates and Regulation in 1994, and she assumed the position of vice president, Finance in 1996. She is a certified public accountant and a certified management accountant.

Ms. Shelton is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the Institute of Management Accountants.

With over $15 billion in assets, El Paso Energy Corporation provides comprehensive energy solutions through its strategic business units: El Paso Natural Gas Company, Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company, Southern Natural Gas Company, El Paso Field Services Company, El Paso Merchant Energy Company, El Paso Production Company, and El Paso Energy International Company. The company owns North America's largest natural gas pipeline system, both in terms of throughput and miles of pipeline, and has operations in natural gas transmission, gas gathering and processing, gas and oil production, power generation, merchant energy services, and international project development. Visit El Paso Energy's web site at www.epenergy.com

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 company has 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 company makes these statements and projections in good faith, neither the company nor its management can guarantee that the anticipated future results will be achieved. Reference should be made to the company's (and its affiliates') Securities and Exchange Commission filings for additional important factors that may affect actual results.