Xcel Energy’s Tolk Coal Plant and Related Savage Operation Named Powder River Basin Coal Users’ Plant of the Year

Salt Lake City, Utah – May 3, 2010 —Savage Companies (Savage) is pleased to announce Xcel Energy’s Roy Tolk Station and Savage’s Tolk energy services group have been co-awarded the Powder River Basin Coal User’s Group’s “Plant of the Year” for 2010, citing the teams’ overall safe operations, environmental diligence, continual improvement and dedication to best practices. The award to both Xcel Energy’s Tolk Station and Savage will be presented at a Power Plant Awards Banquet in Baltimore, MD on May 17. The Tolk Station was one of four plants considered for the award.

The Tolk Station at Muleshoe, TX, along with its sister Harrington Station at Amarillo, TX, is part of Xcel Energy’s Southwestern Public Service Company unit. The plants together are major coal-fired stations, consuming approximately 9 million tons of Powder River Basin coal annually. The Tolk Station, with 1,080 Megawatts of capacity, is the largest plant in the Texas Panhandle and serves a wide group of electrical customers in Texas and New Mexico. Savage owns, operates and maintains the coal handling, receiving, storage and plant feed assets and operations for both plants, as well as providing the unit-train railcars for the plants.

Tolk Station’s plant director, David Low, complimented his plant’s employees, as well as Savage’s people, saying: “Our employees and Savage have strived for excellence over the past few years, and this national recognition reflects that effort. Savage played a big role in winning this award by operating a well-run coal-handling facility. We have enjoyed a great partnership (with Savage) and we are proud to accept this award.”

Savage, a North American leader in providing services to electric power generation, coal mining, oil refining, chemical and Class I railroad customers, owns and/or operates large bulk terminals for coal, petroleum coke, sulphur, chemicals and other commodities; system-based transportation-truck, rail, barge and vessel- moving over 50 million tons annually of coal, coke, waste coal, waste ash and sulphur; and also provides on-site operations and management services for large power plants and oil refiners. Savage has 145 operations in 35 US states and five Canadian provinces. The Company operates in and around 20 coal-fired power stations including units in California, Utah, Texas, Colorado, Louisiana, Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Nova Scotia, Canada. Its power plant services group provides on-site dedicated operations, maintenance, fuel-management and logistics services for its utility customers. Savage is a Creative Solutions company, striving to provide specially tailored services to each customer, with “Best Value-No Worry” services.

Todd L. Savage, the Company’s EVP and Energy & Power Services leader stated, “We are pleased that the Powder River Basin Coal User Group has recognized our outstanding employees at the Tolk Station and the distinctive coal handling services we provide to Xcel Energy. Providing fuel handling and logistics expertise to coal-fired electric power generators is a unique competency Savage has developed over a number of years. This award signifies the quality service we provide to our customers which allows them to focus on their core generation and distribution operations. All of us at Savage are proud of our team at Tolk, and greatly appreciate the opportunity to serve Xcel Energy.”

Xcel Energy (NYSE: XEL) is a major U.S. electricity and natural gas company with regulated operations in eight Western and Midwestern states. Xcel Energy provides a comprehensive portfolio of energy-related products and services to 3.4 million electricity customers and 1.9 million natural gas customers through its regulated operating companies. Company headquarters are located in Minneapolis, MN. More information is available at www.xcelenergy.com.

For further information on Savage, visit its website at www.savageservices.com.