Minnesota Power can keep both Vikings and Packers warm. The utility, an operating unit of ALLETE, provides electricity to about 144,000 customers in northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin, as well as wholesale electricity to 16 municipal systems. Large industrial customers include Boise White Paper (a subsidiary of Boise Cascade) and Hibbing Taconite (a joint venture owned by ArcelorMittal, Cliffs, and US Steel). Its largest purchasing contract is with the Square Butte Electric Co-op in North Dakota -- Minnesota Power gets half of Square Butte's output -- but the company is attempting to transition from Square Butte's traditionally coal-generated energy to wind power.

The Chugoku Electric Power Co. makes western Japan shine. The company generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to more than 5.2 million customers in the Chugoku region of western Japan. Approximately 89% of its customers are residential, and commercial and industrial customers account for the rest. The company's 110 power plants generate about 11,800 MW; traditional thermal plants generate about 65% of its power. Chugoku Electric intends to increase its use of nuclear power and is also researching alternative energy sources. In response to Japan's electricity market liberalization, the group is entering new business markets, including consulting, construction, fuel supply, and telecommunications.

Clearford Industries provides water and wastewater management and sewage treatment services throughout North America. For rural areas the company's patented Small Bore Sewer technology obviates the need for a septic tank by using pipes with a narrow diameter -- as opposed to larger ones used in urban systems -- to transport waste from a residence to a wastewater treatment plant. In 2008 the company sold its Brooklin Concrete division, a leading producer of septic tanks in Ontario, to Armtec Limited Partnership.

UniSource Energy has more than one source of income, but it gets most of its revenues from its energy utilities. The company's Tucson Electric Power unit generates and distributes electricity to almost 402,000 customers in southeastern Arizona. The unit has about 2,230 MW of generating capacity. Subsidiary UniSource Energy Services provides electricity (through UNS Electric Services) to 90,000 customers and natural gas (through UNS Gas) to 146,000 customers in 30 communities in northern and southern areas of the state. UniSource's Millennium Energy Holdings unit invests in unregulated energy and emerging technology companies.

The Native American inhabitants of Georgia may have used flint to spark the fires that brought light to their dwellings. Central Georgians today rely on the Flint Electric Membership Corporation, which does business as Flint Energies, to light their homes. Flint Energies serves 250,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers (through 82,500 meters) in 17 counties, Fort Benning, and the city of Warner Robins. The customer-owned cooperative operates more than 6,250 miles of distribution line and about 50 substations. Flint Energies first flicked the switch in 1937.

Making money by water, Biwater provides water and wastewater treatment services to a range of customers in more than 90 countries. The company also offers water infrastructure investment, consultancy and operation; water asset management; and project management for water leisure facilities. Its Biwater Leisure unit has installed several Olympic-sized pools for almost 40 years. Its international projects include the design and installation of a wastewater treatment plant in Dubai, and a water distribution system for 4.2 million customers in Malaysia. Biwater also designs and builds desalination plants. Focusing on international growth, in 2010 it sold its UK-based Biwater Services Limited unit to MWH Global.

Although The Peoples Natural Gas Company brings the power of natural gas to the people of the Keystone state. The company, which operates as Dominion Peoples, serves about 359,000 commercial, industrial, residential, and transportation natural gas customers in 16 counties in southwestern Pennsylvania. By purchasing methane gas in Pennsylvania, the company keeps costs down by eliminating out-of-state transportation expenses. The gas utility was a division of Dominion Delivery, the gas and electric distribution and retail energy marketing unit of Dominion Resources. In 2010 Dominion Resources sold Peoples Natural Gas to a unit of investment firm SteelRiver Infrastructure.

Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative makes sure that that voracious consumer of electricity -- the American public -- gets the power its needs. The non-profit company is an electric generation and transmission utility that provides services to five member distribution cooperatives in Michigan. Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative monitors and operates 1,600 miles of bulk transmission lines and owns five power plants that generate 200 megawatts of capacity. It also maintains about 130 distribution substations and 36 transmission stations, as well as purchases power (including windpower energy) from other utilities and marketers to distribute to its customers.

TransCanada Corporation operates as an energy infrastructure company in North America. The company operates in two segments, Pipelines and Energy. The Pipelines segment develops and operates energy infrastructure, including natural gas pipelines, regulated gas storage facilities, and projects related to oil pipelines. As of December 31, 2009, its pipelines network extended approximately 60,000 kilometers tapping into various gas supply basins in North America. The Energy segment engages in the acquisition, development, construction, ownership, and operation of electrical power generation plants; the purchase and marketing of electricity; the provision of electricity account services to energy and industrial customers; and the development, construction, ownership, and operation of non-regulated natural gas storage in Alberta. As of December 31, 2009, its power generation plants had 11,700 megawatts of power generation capacity. TransCanada Corporation was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

Western Farmers Electric Cooperative did the generation and transmission cooperative produces more than 1,400 MW of capacity at its coal and natural gas fueled generating plants, with two in Anadarko, one in Mooreland and one in Hugo. The cooperative pipes the juice over 3,500 miles of transmission lines to two-thirds of rural Oklahoma. Western Farmers Electric Cooperative, which is owned by its member distribution cooperatives, supplies 19 distribution co-ops and Altus Air Force base, which serve a combined half-million members.

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