The Board of Directors

Corning Natural Gas Corporation

Corning, New York

We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Corning Natural Gas Corporation, ("the Company") as of September 30, 2000, and the related consolidated statements of income, stockholders' equity, and cash flows for the year then ended. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audit.

We conducted our audit in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statement. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

In our opinion, such consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at September 30, 2000, and the results of their operations and their cash flows for the year then ended in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

/S/ Deloitte & Touche LLP

Deloitte & Touche LLP

Rochester, New York

November 17, 2000