OVERLAND PARK, Kan. - February 10, 2006 - The Board of Directors of Tortoise North American Energy Corp. (NYSE: TYN), today declared the company's initial quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share to be distributed on March 1, 2006 to stockholders of record on February 21, 2006. The dividend is based upon investment activity since the company commenced operations on October 31, 2005.

To date the company has invested nearly all of the initial proceeds from the October 2005 IPO. The company expects to deploy leverage and to have the proceeds of the leverage offering fully invested during the second quarter. Due to the monthly nature of the Canadian securities' payment schedules, the company does not expect to capture the benefits of full investment until the third quarter.

"The uncertain tax implications related to U.S. ownership of Canadian Royalty and Income Trusts have been favorably resolved," said Tortoise Capital Advisor's Managing Director David Schulte. "As a result, investors have driven up prices and reduced yields."

"Based on these current market conditions we are revising our dividend expectation to approximately 5.5 percent on the $25 offering price. Additionally, we expect stockholders will receive a tax credit for the income tax withheld in Canada equating to 0.5 to 1.0 percent incremental yield. Our investment objective of yield, growth and quality remains focused and unchanged."

The company confirmed that this dividend is estimated to be 100 percent ordinary income for book purposes. This is subject to change based upon completion of the company's fiscal year-end. For tax purposes, the character of the dividend will be determined at year-end and will be reported to stockholders at the beginning of 2007 on their Form 1099. 2006 Annual Shareholders' Meeting

Tortoise North American Energy will host its annual shareholders' meeting on April 12, 2006 at 9 a.m. CST at the Doubletree Hotel, 10100 College Blvd. in Overland Park, Kan. For those unable to attend the meeting, a listen-only conference call will be provided. Please dial the number approximately five to 10 minutes prior to the scheduled starting time:

U.S./Canada: (800) 218-0204
International: (303) 262-2140

The meeting will also be webcast in a listen-only format. The link to the webcast can be accessed at www.tortoiseadvisors.com where supplemental information related to the meeting will also be available.

A replay of the meeting will be available beginning at 1 p.m. CST on April 12, 2006 and continuing until 12 a.m. C.T. April 26, 2006, by dialing (800) 405-2236 (U.S./Canada). The replay access code is 11052482#. A replay of the webcast will also be available on the Web site of the company's adviser at www.tortoiseadvisors.com through April 12, 2007.