ADESA Corporation Strengthens Management Team

ADESA USA & CANADA LOGO
Adesa USA & Canada logo. (PRNewsFoto)[AG]
DULUTH, MN USA 03/08/2001
    INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 4 ADESA Corporation, a business unit
of ALLETE, Inc. , today announced that Brian J. Warner, president
of ADESA Canada, has been appointed to the position of president of ADESA
Corporation, based in Indianapolis, Ind.  Warner's appointment, which takes
effect Oct. 1, 2001, was announced by current company President Jim Hallett,
who will remain chairman and chief executive officer of ADESA Corporation.
    (Photo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20010308/ADESALOGO )
    "Brian's addition to ADESA's corporate office strengthens an already deep
management team and provides me the opportunity to focus more of my time on
growing our salvage business and to look for opportunities to enhance our
other services," Hallett said.
    "Brian Warner has a proven track record and his attention to the
fundamentals of the auction business will strengthen existing operations and
will position ADESA for growth well into the future," said David Gartzke,
president of ALLETE, Inc.  "Jim Hallett and his team grew ADESA from 16 to
54 auction locations and he led the company into the automobile salvage
business.  He will continue to seek out new growth opportunities as he serves
as chairman and chief executive officer of ADESA Corporation, as well as
executive vice president of ALLETE, Inc."
    Warner joined ADESA in 1994 as corporate controller and chief financial
officer.  Later he became general manager of ADESA's Indianapolis auction
facility.  In 1998 Warner was named president of ADESA Canada, where he grew
the company from three to 13 wholesale automobile auctions and expanded
ADESA's salvage presence through Impact Salvage Auctions.  Warner holds a
bachelor's degree from Ball State University, with majors in accounting and
management information systems.
    "My family and I are grateful and excited about the opportunity to return
to the U.S.," Warner said.  "However, we are leaving behind many great
friends, employees and customer relationships in a country we have grown to
love."
    Dale Hewitt, current chief operating officer and a 30-year auction
veteran, will succeed Warner as president of ADESA Canada.
    ADESA Corporation is North America's second-largest provider of wholesale
vehicle remarketing services.  The company operates 54 wholesale auctions and
24 salvage auction facilities.
    ALLETE, Inc., is a multi-services company with corporate headquarters in
Duluth, Minn.  ALLETE's holdings include the second-largest wholesale
automobile auction network in North America; the leading provider of
independent auto dealer inventory financing; the largest investor-owned water
utilities in Florida and North Carolina; significant real estate holding in
Florida; and a low-cost electric utility that serves some of the largest
industrial customers in the United States.
    The statements contained in this release and statement that ALLETE and
ADESA Corporation may make orally in connection with this release that are not
historical facts are forward-looking statements.  Actual results may differ
materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements.  These
forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, and investors are
directed to the risks discussed in documents filed by ALLETE with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.

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