Sierra Pacific changes name

LAS VEGAS " Nevada's twin electric utilities will soon be known under one name, NV Energy Inc., company officials said.

The two utilities serving northern and southern Nevada, Sierra Pacific Power in Reno and Nevada Power in Las Vegas, will remain separate legal entities under its Reno-based parent company, but each will do business as NV Energy.

Company president and chief executive Michael Yackira said the move won't mean layoffs or require much more than changing logos on letterhead and signs.

Yackira said the move could mean savings for customers as the company stops producing things with separate logos, but he did not provide a dollar amount.

Company officials might consider fully consolidating the two companies, but such a change would not happen for a few years, Yackira said. Nevada Power and Sierra Pacific Power have been separate subsidiaries of Sierra Pacific Resources since 1999.

"We've done a good job of integrating the two companies operationally, we just have never integrated the companies fully by having the same name, the same vision, the same platform, the same message all the time," Yackira said.

Yackira said the move allows the utilities to unify their goals. He said the company will push forward with renewable energy plants and traditional coal power plants, as well as new transmission lines to meet increasing demand.

Customers will begin to see the NV Energy name on their bills soon, he said.

The company serves some 2.4 million Nevada residents statewide, as well as millions of tourists each year.