Northwestern Energy
Encyclopedia
NorthWestern Corporation owns NorthWestern Energy, a utility company that serves South Dakota
, Nebraska
, and Montana
that is based in Sioux Falls. As of December 31, 2007, the company serves approximately 650,000 customers.
The company's corporate headquarters are located in Sioux Falls while the headquarters for the South Dakota operations (and which was the headquarters for the old NorthWestern Public Service Company) are in Huron, SD. The Montana operations (formerly known as the Montana Power Company) were acquired around 2000 after that state passed some legislation allowing the electric utility industry to be 'unbundled'. Out of state investors (led by Pennsylvania Power & Light) then immediately acquired the generation assets of Montana Power, leaving that part of the territory vulnerable to high "spot" prices on the energy market (creating some chronic discontent that led the Montana Public Service Commission to submit the one "no" vote that effectively nullified a potential sale of NorthWestern to Babcock & Brown Infrastructure of Australia).
In March 2009, NorthWestern Energy was involved with a gas explosion in Bozeman, Montana
. The explosion destroyed several businesses and killed one person. By November, the company was sued by numerous owners of the destroyed businesses.
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, and Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
that is based in Sioux Falls. As of December 31, 2007, the company serves approximately 650,000 customers.
The company's corporate headquarters are located in Sioux Falls while the headquarters for the South Dakota operations (and which was the headquarters for the old NorthWestern Public Service Company) are in Huron, SD. The Montana operations (formerly known as the Montana Power Company) were acquired around 2000 after that state passed some legislation allowing the electric utility industry to be 'unbundled'. Out of state investors (led by Pennsylvania Power & Light) then immediately acquired the generation assets of Montana Power, leaving that part of the territory vulnerable to high "spot" prices on the energy market (creating some chronic discontent that led the Montana Public Service Commission to submit the one "no" vote that effectively nullified a potential sale of NorthWestern to Babcock & Brown Infrastructure of Australia).
In March 2009, NorthWestern Energy was involved with a gas explosion in Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists...
. The explosion destroyed several businesses and killed one person. By November, the company was sued by numerous owners of the destroyed businesses.