Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency,the power provider supplies wholesale electricity to its 18 member municipal distribution utilities, which in turn distribute power to more than 109,000 retail customers. The agency's main power source is the 900 MW Sherco 3-power plant generating unit near Becker, Minnesota. Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency owns 41% of the low-sulfur Western coal fueled plant in partnership Northern States Power Company, the unit's operator. It also relies on a range of intermediate and peaking units owned by the agency's members.

Deriving its name from an old Eskimo tribal word, Chugach Electric Association generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in Alaska's railbelt region. This area extends from the coastal Chugach Mountains into central Alaska and includes the state's two largest cities (Anchorage and Fairbanks). The member-owned cooperative utility has 530 MW of generating capacity from its natural gas-fired and hydroelectric power plants. Serving 80,300 metered retail locations, Chugach Electric, the largest electric utility in Alaska, also sells wholesale power to other municipal and cooperative utilities in the region.

The dryly named electric utility Electric Power Development Co. has a much more fun nickname -- J-POWER. With a generating capacity of 16,380 MW, the company supplies power used all over Japan. It has 67 hydroelectric plants, as well as some thermal and geothermal plants, and owns a transmission network that covers 2,400 km. J-POWER acts as a wholesale electric utility, selling to other electric power companies. Established by the Japanese government in 1952, J-POWER went through the privatization process, finally achieving full privatization and trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2004. The company is also sometimes referred to as EPDC.

RainSoft (a division of Aquion Water Treatment Products) wants to clear up the water in your home or office. Through its division, the company makes residential and commercial water treatment equipment. Products include whole-house water conditioning systems, drinking water systems, and filters designed to remove particular contaminants that detract from water's taste and odor. RainSoft's products are distributed through a network of about 300 independent dealers in the US and in 24 countries in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Clients have included Allstate , Dow Chemical, Ford Motor, Holiday Inn, and Underwriters Laboratories.

Environmental Waste Controls (EWC) slows down the fill-up of UK landfills. The company leases and sells waste-compactor equipment and provides maintenance services for the compactors. It also collects, transports, and recycles or disposes of waste for its 400-plus public- and private-sector customers, which include manufacturing and retail companies, food processors, hotels (such as Hilton and Radisson Hotels), railway stations, National Health Service Trusts, and local governments. The company was the subject of a management buyout in 2004. EWC was founded in 1993.

Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative's mission is similar to the late Lady Bird Johnson's quest to spread wildflower seeds along Texas' highways -- the cooperative spreads currents of electricity among rural central Texas dwellers. One of the largest power distribution cooperatives in the state, Bluebonnet Electric serves almost 80,000 customers in 14 counties. The member-owned company, which was formed in 1939, operates approximately 11,000 miles of transmission and distribution lines, and 19 substations. It purchases its wholesale power supply at 21 Lower Colorado River Authority-owned substations.

Power and Texas come together at the Texas Municipal Power Agency, which provides electricity generation and transmission services to four municipal utilities (Bryan, Denton, Garland, and Greenville). The joint powers agency, which was created in 1975 by its member cities, owns and operates the 462-MW Gibbons Creek power plant and related transmission assets. In the wake of the oil embargo the early 1970s, the Texas Legislature created joint powers agencies that could perform all the duties of utilities except sell power to non-members. Bryan, Denton, Garland, and Greenville then formed the Texas Municipal Power Agency and harnessed locally available lignite to fuel a power generation plant.

This Springfield is not Homer Simpson's hometown, or Abe Lincoln's. City Utilities of Springfield, Missouri supplies electricity, natural gas, and water for residents and businesses in the southwestern Missouri town. The utility, which has about 1,970 miles of power lines and 1,300 miles of natural gas mains, serves about 106,560 electric customers, more than 82,220 natural gas customers, and more than 76,600 water customers. It also operates the municipal bus system, which has 25 regular street buses and five demand/response buses. City Utilities of Springfield has a service region of 320 sq. ml. and serves a base population of 229,000.

Dee Valley Group, operating through its Dee Valley Water unit, supplies water to more than 106,000 households and 8,250 commercial, industrial, and business customers in North East Wales and Cheshire. Dee Valley Water, formed from the combination of Wrexham Water and Chester Waterworks, supplies water to an 831-sq.-km. area. Dee Valley Water exited its nonwater operations in 2002. The company has been investing in its mains and distribution system to preventage leakage, and in 2005 it completed a 15-year water main rehabilitation program. It also commissioned a water treatment works at Pendinas. Dee Valley Group was created in 1994 as the holding company for Wrexham Water. Axa Sun Life owns 35% of the company.

Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation is a member-owned cooperative whose mission is to benefit our member-owners by providing reliable electric and energy services - delivered efficiently and with extraordinary customer care. Blue Ridge Electric serves approximately 73,700 consumers in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, and Alleghany counties and parts of Wilkes, Alexander and Avery counties. We are part of the Touchstone Energy network, an alliance of 680 cooperatives in 46 states, that collectively deliver power and energy solutions to more than 40 million consumers every day.Our wholly-owned subsidiary, Blue Ridge Energies, is a private, for-profit company that provides propane and heating fuels to residential and business customers from offices in Lenoir, Boone, West Jefferson,As a comprehensive energy company, Blue Ridge Electric's guiding purpose is to be a major shaper of the future in our market area and to experience the joy of helping people achieve new levels of economic prosperity.

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