NorthWestern Energy has announced agreements to supply significant amounts of electricity to two proposed data centers in Montana, with combined power demands set to exceed the capacity of the state’s newest gas-fired power plant. The development raises questions about Montana’s energy infrastructure and its ability to meet growing demand while maintaining reliable service. The larger Read More…
Montana’s unemployment rate remained at 3.2% in November, continuing an unprecedented stretch of low unemployment that has persisted for 41 consecutive months, with rates at or below 3.4%. The state’s historic run surpasses the previous record set in 2006-2007 when unemployment rates stayed at or below 3.4% for 15 months. In November alone, Montana added Read More…
Frontier Asset Management, an independent asset management firm, has officially launched its suite of actively managed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). These ETFs are designed to enhance Frontier’s multi-asset Active ETF Strategies, with the goal of providing attractive risk-adjusted returns for investors. The Frontier ETF suite consists of six actively Read More…
(The Center Square) – Methane emissions from the largest oil- and natural gas-producing basins fell 44% between 2011 and 2013, according to newly published data from the Environmental Protection Agency. According to the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, methane emissions dropped in seven oil- and natural gas-producing basins by up to 87% from 2019-2023. The Read More…
After taking the top spot at Disrupt San Francisco’s Startup Battlefield, Mobalytics has been hard at work preparing to roll out their analytics-driven competitive gaming coach to more and more of the nearly 20,000 users who have signed up for early access. In the six weeks since Disrupt SF, the company has been raising Read More…
CorEnergy Infrastructure Trust (CORR) has announced that a subsidiary of Ultra Petroleum has agreed to assume the lease on its Pinedale Liquids Gathering System without amendment, through a motion filed today in bankruptcy court. CORR is the first publicly listed real estate investment trust focusing on energy infrastructure. According to the CORR website, the Pinedale Read More…
Microsoft Corp. has announced its largest wind power deal to date: 237 megawatts (MW) that will power their data center outside of Cheyenne. This will bring Microsoft’s total investment in wind energy projects to more than 500 MW. This deal will combine a 178 MW from the Bloom Wind project in Kansas with a long-term Read More…
Made in Montana; it’s a slogan you see on everything from huckleberry jams, to jewelry, to films, and of course beer. For breweries, finding that authentic Made in Montana path is as challenging as it is rewarding. Mike and Greg Howard opened Missoula’s Great Burn brewery two and a half years ago. “We’ve been craft Read More…
The election of Donald Trump may mean a new bridge over the Clark Fork River for Missoula. After all, the real estate mogul likes to build stuff, and Trump talked about the need for infrastructure during his raucous campaign. That infrastructure is vital to Montana’s economy and those nurturing growth in the business sector, said Read More…
At Archie Cochrane Ford, a safe culture for its 115 employees led to a big payday Monday. At the Billings auto dealership, officials from the Montana State Fund distributed about $43,000 in dividends from Archie Cochrane workers’ compensation premiums. Archie Cochrane was among the largest recipients in Yellowstone County, which received $4.6 million Read More…
Joyce Kemph and Sue Miller have welcomed people into their Wyoming Home for many years. Now, the co-owners are ready to retire. They want to spend more time with their families and pursue other interests. The owners hope someone will buy the business. “Our dream is that a person or persons with an entrepreneurial spirit Read More…
Governor Bullock announced $1.3 million funding for Montana businesses to expand apprenticeship programs on Thursday morning. Collision Pro Owner Barry Reddick told MTN News that his company has been using the apprenticeship program since 1997. “The program’s helped out business bringing up people from an apprenticeship to a journey level position. It’s helped us, and it’s helped them,” said Reddick. Read More…
The Montana Chamber of Commerce recently released its 10-year strategic plan, which includes goals to increase wages, encourage business growth and improve the state’s infrastructure. The plan, titled Envision 2026, outlines five central objectives that it hopes to tackle over the coming years, as well as specific strategies to achieve the goals and metrics to Read More…
Stockman Asset Management (SAM), an independent Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) and provider of integrated wealth management solutions based in Billings has acquired Peak Investment Management, Ltd. Peak is also an RIA firm based in Missoula. The two firms now offer their services on a larger scale with locations in Helena, Missoula, Conrad and Billings. Peak Read More…
An entrepreneurship support center for Montana State University students, alumni and faculty has won a $50,000 award from the U.S. Small Business Administration to help enhance its business accelerator program, 406 Labs. The Blackstone LaunchPad at MSU was one of 68 programs selected nationwide as winners of the Growth Accelerator Fund Competition on Aug. 31. Read More…
For the first time since March of 2014, oil production in the state of North Dakota has slipped below the one million barrel a day mark. The latest production figures out this week show that in August, North Dakota production slipped to 981 thousand, 39 barrels per day. That represents a drop of some 49 thousand barrels per day, compared to July’s Read More…
Last month, several individuals and businesses in the Gallatin Valley won the lottery. Out of more than 600 applicants in Bozeman and Belgrade, four names were chosen by the Montana Department of Revenue as the winners of the state’s annual liquor lottery. The lottery is part of Montana’s population-based alcohol license quota system, which permits Read More…
General Electric Co. plans to buy a maker of wind-turbine blades for $1.65 billion, bolstering the renewable-energy business amid growing demand for clean power. The deal for Denmark-based LM Wind Power will enhance GE’s ability to serve customers in the onshore and offshore wind markets, the companies said Tuesday in a statement. LM Wind Read More…
Google and Facebook are teaming up to build a 120 Terabits per second (Tbps) submarine cable that will connect Los Angeles with Hong Kong. The two companies are working with Pacific Light Data Communication — a wholly owned subsidiary of China Soft Power Technology that’s relatively new to the sub-sea cable game. Once the Read More…
A man as unique as the Highland cattle herd he manages, Wally Congdon, is an accomplished Montana attorney and the owner and operator of Big Sky Natural Beef. From raising to finishing, Congdon does it all on his western Montana ranch, and has created a market for his grass-fed, all natural Highland beef around Read More…
As Dakota Access Pipeline opponents fanned out and stopped construction at multiple sites again Thursday, Oct. 6, the Morton County sheriff said he has assigned more resources to the area and will call in deputies from other states if necessary to respond to simultaneous protests. “We have basically tapped the resources to a level Read More…
Construction work on the Dakota Access Pipeline is nearly completed along the North Dakota portion of the project route. The September construction report from Dakota Access LLC, a partner of Energy Transfer Partners LP, shows that 87 percent of the project has been completed in the state through the end of the month. This Read More…
Eight North Dakota lenders have earned the 2016 Director’s Award from the U.S. Small Business Administration North Dakota District Office, honoring their participation with SBA in supporting the growth and expansion of small businesses in their communities. The winners are: Dakota Certified Development Corp., U.S. Bank, Capital Credit Union, Choice Financial, VISIONBank, Starion Financial, Town Read More…
One of downtown Helena’s largest employers is ready to make a move to the east side of town. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Montana will start operations Monday at its new headquarters in the Mountain View Meadows subdivision. Leaders say the move will be in several stages and should be finished in about two weeks. Read More…
The three newest members of Montana State University Billings’ Business Hall of Fame will accept individual honors this week, but all of them say they haven’t succeeded without surrounding themselves with a team. “This honor is focused on me, but it shouldn’t. I had the fortunate opportunity to work with tremendous… people,” said Karen Fagg Read More…
A pair of local businesses were honored as part of the 23rd Annual Family Business Day hosted by Montana State University’s Jake Jabs College of Business & Entrepreneurship. Bozeman baked goods company Elliotts of Montana and retailer Wild West Shirt Company were among the six businesses awarded at Friday’s event. Busted Knuckle Brewery in Glasgow, Read More…
Conferences, especially in the technology sector, are great opportunities for people of similar interests to meet up and interact. On Sept. 22, Malta held its Hi-Line Technology Roundup. The free conference focused on the use of communication technologies in a rural environment, with topics relating to remote work, software for ranchers and technological advances in Read More…
Wyoming has the most competitive tax code in the nation according to the 13th annual State Business Tax Climate Index, released today by the nonpartisan Tax Foundation. The report measures how well-structured each state’s tax code is by analyzing over 100 tax variables in five different tax categories: corporate, individual income, sales, property, and unemployment Read More…
While University of Montana students will start getting around campus through electric power this fall, Missoula’s main transit agency also has electric buses on its shopping list. “We’re aggressively going after federal grant opportunities as they arise and looking at how we can move in that direction,” Mountain Line General Manager Corey Aldridge said, The Read More…
More than half of the minimum wage workers in Montana are older than 25 and more than 60 percent are women. The Montana Department of Labor and Industry announced on Thursday the new minimum wage for a group it calls an important part of the workforce. The minimum wage will increase to $8.15 an hour starting Read More…
Burger Dive’s “I’m Your Huckleberry” is the People’s Choice at the the Zoofari burger competition at ZooMontana on Friday night. The very first Zoofari brought burgers, brews and bands for a big party and fund raiser. The Montana Beef Council sponsored the competition. Callaghan Enterprises, Grille 406 out of Bozeman, Stacked, a Montana Grill and Read More…
The Montana Supreme Court has upheld the state’s Public Service Commission’s decision to deny a $1.4 million rate increase requested by NorthWestern Energy. An outage at a plant in January 2012 forced the company to buy power from third parties, but the PSC had ruled that even with the outage, NorthWestern Energy was allowed to collect $8.3 Read More…
2 new lifts are almost done at Big Sky Resort, and one of them finally has a name. Workers are still laying the steel on the upper terminal of the new “powder seeker” lift. The grade work is already done on the new high tech, heated and covered seat lift. Overall work on the 2 new Read More…
Crowdsourcing live traffic data has been one of Waze’s key competitive advantages in navigation software for a while, but Germany’s HERE might give it a run for its money with new services that pull traffic info from cars on the road. The data gathered by Here’s upcoming traffic services, which it’s set to debut during Read More…
Uber today announced yet another rewards program for its drivers and riders, this time in partnership with retailer Sears and its “Shop Your Way” loyalty platform. The program offers drivers points redeemable for products at Search, Kmart and Lands End, as well as discounts on vehicle maintenance and repairs at Sears Auto Centers. Meanwhile, riders who Read More…
Billings-based GTUIT, LLC has earned the 203rd position on Inc. magazine’s 2016 Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private American companies with a three- year revenue growth rate of 1,894%. For 35 years, Inc. has tracked the fastest-growing private companies which have included firms like Microsoft, Under Armor, Oracle and Yeti Cooler. GTUIT stands out because Read More…
Six businesses will receive Montana Family Business Program awards at the 2016 Montana State University Jake Jabs College of Business & Entrepreneurship State Farm Insurance Family Business Day, set for Friday, Oct. 7, at the Best Western Plus GranTree Inn in Bozeman. The 2016 Family Business Day award winners are: Elliotts of Montana of Bozeman Read More…
Agriculture in Montana looks to be back on the right track after last year’s rough market and drought-ridden growing season, the state reported, and local farmers are finding more success in their harvests than last year. “We’ve experienced more volatility in the past five years than we have in the past several decades,” Mountain West Read More…
If you have listened to Montana gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte speak on his economic plans, one key area regarding jobs is to bring the state’s kids home with high paying jobs in the technology sector. Gianforte and his wife founded and grew RightNow Technologies in Bozeman before selling the business to the multi-national corporation Oracle. Read More…
Wyoming’s unemployment rate fell in August for the first time in 18 months, the Department of Workforce Services reported Tuesday. The shift from 5.7 percent unemployment in July to 5.5 percent last month is not a statistically significant drop, but it offers hope that the state economy is stabilizing. Natrona County had the fourth-largest decrease Read More…
Members of the Chippewa Cree Tribe gathered along the bank of the Missouri River in Great Falls on Tuesday evening to show their support for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in North Dakota. The group is joining in protest of the multi-billion dollar Dakota Access Pipeline that would cross the Missouri River several times across Read More…
MISSOULA — More than 11 million out-of-state travelers come to Montana every year, yet it is only one of five states in the country with no statewide sales tax. Proponents of a sales tax say it’s a giant missed opportunity to generate revenue from those tourists. Detractors say it would disproportionately hurt lower-income residents. A Read More…
There’s an EpiPen Tycoon computer game. In it, you are the CEO of Mylan, Heather Bresch, the daughter of a US senator who has been handed a drug that lays a golden egg — EpiPen, an emergency anaphylaxis treatment that stops people’s throats from closing in the event of an allergic reaction. It’s Read More…
When Lori Goler, Facebook’s Vice President of People, joined the company in 2008, she got to work making the company a “strengths-based” organization. It’s a term based on Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman’s 1999 bestselling management guide “First, Break All the Rules.” The coauthors were Gallup analysts at the time and drew insights from 25 years Read More…