Great Plains Energy Receives Shareholder Approval to Move Forward with Aquila Transaction

Business Wire, Oct 10, 2007

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Great Plains Energy Incorporated (NYSE: GXP), the parent company of Kansas City Power & Light (KCP&L), announced that it has received approval from its shareholders to issue common stock in connection with its acquisition of Aquila. The company made the announcement following a meeting of shareholders today.

On February 7, 2007, Great Plains Energy announced that it had entered into definitive agreements to acquire all the outstanding shares of Aquila for $1.80 in cash plus $0.0856 of a share of Great Plains Energy common stock for each share of Aquila common stock. Immediately prior to the acquisition, Black Hills Corporation will acquire from Aquila its electric utility in Colorado and its gas utilities in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa along with the associated liabilities. Each transaction is conditioned on the closing of the other transaction.

The Great Plains Energy-Aquila combination will result in a strong regional utility well-positioned to meet the growing energy needs of the greater Kansas City area.

"Achieving this milestone is a significant step toward the completion of the acquisition and realizing the benefits we see for customers, shareholders, the community and our employees," Michael Chesser, Chairman and CEO, Great Plains Energy, said.

The acquisition is still subject to the approval of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the state public service commissions of Missouri and Kansas. The Aquila-Black Hills transaction is still subject to the approval of FERC and the state public service commissions of Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas. The transactions are currently expected to close in the first quarter of 2008.

About Great Plains Energy

Great Plains Energy (NYSE: GXP), headquartered in Kansas City, Mo., is the holding company for KCP&L, a leading regulated provider of electricity in the Midwest, and Strategic Energy, LLC, a competitive electricity supplier. The company's website is www.greatplainsenergy.com.

Information Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

Statements made in this document that are not based on historical facts are forward-looking, may involve risks and uncertainties, and are intended to be as of the date when made. In connection with the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Great Plains Energy is providing a number of important factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially for the provided forward-looking information. These include: the timing of, and the conditions imposed by, regulatory approvals required for the transactions; satisfying the conditions to the closing of the transactions; Great Plains Energy successfully integrating the acquired Aquila, Inc., businesses into its other operations, avoiding problems which may result in either company not operating as effectively and efficiently as expected; the timing and amount of cost-cutting synergies; unexpected costs or unexpected liabilities, or the effects of purchase accounting may be different from Great Plains Energy's expectations; the actual resulting credit ratings of Great Plains Energy or Aquila, Inc., or their respective subsidiaries; the effects on the businesses of Great Plains Energy or Aquila, Inc., resulting from uncertainty surrounding the transactions; the effect of future regulatory or legislative actions on Great Plains Energy or Aquila, Inc.; and other economic, business, and/or competitive factors.

Additional factors that may affect the future results of Great Plains Energy are set forth in its most recent quarterly report on Form 10-Q or annual report on Form 10-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), which are available at www.greatplainsenergy.com. Great Plains Energy undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.