CH Energy Group Board Appoints VanBuren to New Office

(Poughkeepsie, NY) The Board of Directors of CH Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:CHG) has appointed Denise D. VanBuren to the position of Corporate Secretary and Vice President of Corporate Communications, effective Dec. 1, 2009. VanBuren joined the energy holding company’s regulated utility Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation in 1993. She was appointed an officer in 1999 and to positions of increasing responsibility, serving most recently as Vice President of Public Affairs and Energy Efficiency. “Denise brings both a strong communication background and a great deal of industry experience to this appointment. That combination will provide a unique benefit in a role that involves responsibility not only for the accuracy and transparency of corporate documents and recordkeeping, but also for timely, relevant and effective communications with all of our stakeholders,” said Steven V. Lant, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer.

He noted that VanBuren will retain her responsibilities to administer the Company’s community affairs and communication activities, and will assume executive oversight of Shareholder Relations and Office Services.

            VanBuren received a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Mount St. Mary College and holds an undergraduate degree in Journalism from St. Bonaventure University. A former television news director and anchor, she lives in Chelsea, with her three sons. She currently serves on the boards of several community organizations, including United Way of Dutchess County, Locust Grove and the Hudson Valley Region of the American Cancer Society.

About CH Energy Group, Inc.

CH Energy Group, Inc. is a family of companies seizing new opportunities in the energy marketplace through two primary subsidiaries: Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation is a regulated transmission and distribution utility serving approximately 300,000 electric and about 74,000 natural gas customers in eight counties of New York State’s Mid-Hudson River Valley, and delivering natural gas and electricity in a 2,600-square-mile service territory that extends north from the suburbs of metropolitan New York City to the Capital District at Albany.  Central Hudson Enterprises Corporation, a non-regulated subsidiary, is the umbrella for a family of energy-related companies and investments focused primarily on fuel distribution and renewable energy.  Griffith Energy Service’s fuel distribution business currently supply energy products and services to approximately 108,000 customers in 10 states, stretching from Rhode Island to the Washington, D.C. area.  CHEC also has interests in a Lexington, Neb., ethanol plant and several renewable energy projects in the Northeast.

#    #    #

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements included in this News Release and any documents incorporated by reference which are not historical in nature are intended to be, and are hereby identified as, “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the safe harbor provided by Section 21E of the Exchange Act.  Forward-looking statements may be identified by words including “anticipates,” “intends,” “estimates,” “believes,” “projects,” “expects,” “plans,” “assumes,” “seeks,” and similar expressions.  Forward-looking statements including, without limitation, those relating to CH Energy Group and its subsidiaries' future business prospects, revenues, proceeds, working capital, liquidity, income, and margins, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements, due to several important factors, including those identified from time-to-time in the forward-looking statements.  Those factors include, but are not limited to: weather; fuel prices; corn and ethanol prices; plant capacity factors; energy supply and demand; interest rates; potential future acquisitions; developments in the legislative, regulatory, and competitive environment; market risks; electric and natural gas industry restructuring and cost recovery; the ability to obtain adequate and timely rate relief; changes in fuel supply or costs including future market prices for energy, capacity, and ancillary services; the success of strategies to satisfy electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, and propane requirements; the outcome of pending litigation and certain environmental matters, particularly the status of inactive hazardous waste disposal sites and waste site remediation requirements; and certain presently unknown or unforeseen factors, including, but not limited to, acts of terrorism. CH Energy Group and its subsidiaries undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.   Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements.