Hampton, NH – September 20, 2000 – Unitil Corporation (AMEX:UTL) has once again topped a prestigious field of competitors to win multiple awards in the American Society of Professional Communicators’ (ASPC) 2000 Annual Report Awards competition. This is the first of several competitions in which Unitil’s 1999 Annual Report to Shareholders is being judged this year, and the third consecutive year in which Unitil has received national recognition.

More than 200 entries representing dozens of industries were judged in this nation-wide competition. Among companies with gross revenues less than $250 million, ASPC presented a total of 11 awards. Unitil received three of these, including "best-of-category" for its narrative section – "METAMORPHOSIS." Entries that demonstrated superior quality in a particular area were also chosen by the competition committee to receive the Colonial Award for Excellence. Unitil was named Colonial Award winner for "front cover" and for "photography and graphic design."

Said Unitil Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert G. Schoenberger, "Annual reports are evaluated on many levels and by many constituencies. In years past, Unitil has been honored with top awards from the investor community and the business world. This series of awards represents the opinions of professional communicators and, as such, signifies the respect our work has gained from people whose careers are dedicated to clear, unambiguous communication and good design."

Other award recipients included such well-known companies as Genentech, Anheuser-Busch, Snap-On Incorporated, The Limited, Inc., Tyson Foods, Exxon Mobil Corporation, PaineWebber, Sprint, and United Airlines.

Unitil is a public utility holding company with subsidiaries providing electric service in New Hampshire, electric and gas service in Massachusetts and energy services throughout the Northeast. Its subsidiaries include Concord Electric Company, Exeter & Hampton Electric Company, Fitchburg Gas and Electric Light Company, Unitil Power Corp., Unitil Realty Corp., Unitil Service Corp. and its unregulated business unit Unitil Resources, Inc. Usource L.L.C. is a subsidiary of Unitil Resources, Inc. The Usource product line of Internet-based energy brokering and related products and services is available at www.usourceonline.com.

Contact
Don Hudson
hudson@unitil.com