Otter Tail covers a swath of businesses, from electric services and food-ingredient processing to manufacturing equipment, plastics, and health services. Its electric utility and energy activities are subsidiaries of Otter Tail, and its subsidiary Varistar holds Otter Tail's other interests. The electric utility has been the company's core effort since Otter Tail's start in 1907; it keeps the lights on for 129,000-plus residential, commercial, and industrial customers in Minnesota and the Dakotas. Otter Tail also makes PVC pipes, wind towers, metal parts, and processes potato flakes, as well as offers diagnostic medical equipment, and construction and trucking services.

Sociedad General de Aguas de Barcelona, S.A. (Agbar) distributes water to more than 12 million people (almost 19 million during tourist season) and provides wastewater services for more than 6.2 million people. The company also has stakes in water businesses in Chile and the UK. Agbar has sold its solid-waste collection and treatment operations in order to focus on its core water business. Activities in Spain account for about 83% of the company's sales. Agbar is 66%-owned by Holding de Infraestructuras y Servicios Urbanos S.A.

Renegy Holdings (formerly Catalytica Energy Systems) was formed in the 2007 merger of Catalytica with the renewable energy divisions of NZ Legacy, a land and energy development firm. Among other ventures, Renegy has built a biomass power generation plant near Snowflake, Arizona, that came online in 2008. The company has long-term power purchasing agreements in place with Arizona Public Service and Salt River Project to buy biomass electricity from the Snowflake White Mountain Power plant. To save costs, in 2009 Renegy delisted its stock from the NASDAQ exchange.

Public Utility District No. 2 of Grant County, Washington, probably used up its initial budget before it could hire a team of branding and identity consultants. But a dour name does not stop the power provider (commonly referred to as Grant County PUD) from operating two hydroelectric power plants on the Columbia River (2,000 MW of generating capacity) and distributing electricity to the 40,000 residents of Washington's Grant County. The district, which was formed in 1938 and went into operation in 1942, also sells power to twelve Pacific Northwest utilities and is developing a residential fiber-optic data network.

PPL packs a powerful punch in Pennsylvania, Kentucky and the UK, where it distributes electricity to 5.2 million customers through regulated subsidiaries PPL Electric Utilities (1.4 million customers), two utilities in Kentucky (1.2 million), and Western Power Distribution Holdings (2.6 million electricity customers). The company has 19,000 MW of generating capacity and also sells energy wholesale in key US markets. Once a global power player with interests in distribution companies worldwide, the company has opted for the UK as its non-US focus. Western Power Distribution operates two of the 15 distribution networks providing electricity service in the UK -- WPD (South West) and WPD (South Wales).

China Power International Development Limited (China Power) is one of five national power generating groups that construct and operate large power plants in China. The company is a subsidiary of CPI Holding, and is ultimately controlled by China Power Investment Group (CPI Group). China Power owns five high-capacity coal-fired power plants, including the Pingwei Power Plant and the Yaomeng Power Plant. It also has stakes in power plants in Changshu and Shanghai. The company has an installed capacity of more than 9,000 MW. China Power also manages three other power plants, which have a total installed capacity of about 1,300 MW.

Viridian Group, through its main subsidiary, regulated regional electric company Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE), transmits and distributes power to about 793,000 homes and businesses in Northern Ireland. Its NIE Energy Supply unit is the regulated electricity supplier in Northern Ireland. Viridian is also involved in unregulated businesses, including retail power and natural gas marketing (Energia) and high-voltage electrical infrastructure contracting (Powerteam). It also participates in Ireland's electricity market through its Energia subsidiary, which deals in both retail and wholesale energy. In 2010 Irish power utility ESB Group acquired NIE from Viridian for $1 billion.

Hokkaido Electric Power Co. (HEPCO) distributes electricity to almost 3.9 million residential, commercial, and industrial customers on the northernmost Japanese island, Hokkaido. The company operates more than 46,760 miles of transmission and distribution lines, and it owns thermal, hydroelectric, and nuclear power plants (including the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors at Tomari Power Station). HEPCO also purchases and markets wholesale energy; other operations include engineering and construction, energy consulting, electrical appliance sales, telecommunications, information technology, and utility-related services. New businesses include medical imaging systems and realty. The company was founded in 1951.

Reliance Infrastructure, formerly Reliance Energy, transmits and distributes electricity across India. The company's service territory covers an area exceeding a 124,300 square kilometers and includes the major cities of Delhi and Mumbai. Reliance Infrastructure operates power plants that generate more than 940 MW of capacity. Part of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, Reliance Infrastructure delivers more than 36 billion units of electricity to more than 30 million consumers. The company is also a major player in India's heavy construction market, and is engaged in constructing roads and airports, and developing urban infrastructure. It also has interests in real estate and retail hospitality.

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.

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