Let's cut right to the point: construction materials and mining used to be the lifeblood of Knife River Corporation, but in recent years, its energy and utility operations have grown to be the largest portion of its business. Oil and natural gas production, power transmission, pipelines and power utilities now dominate Knife River's balance sheet. But don't count out its construction services division, which continues to produce record earnings. Knife River has operations in Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon, California, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, Texas, and Wyoming. The company is a subsidiary of MDU Resources Group, Inc.

Detroit Edison generates and distributes electricity to 2.1 million customers in Michigan. The utility, a unit of regional power player DTE Energy, has more than 11,080 MW of generating capacity from its interests in nfossil-fueled, nuclear, and hydroelectric power plants. It operates more than 44,000 circuit miles of distribution lines and owns and operates about 680 distribution substations. Detroit Edison also sells excess power to wholesale customers and provides coal transportation services.

Community Energy is working to create greener communities in the northeastern and midwestern US. Through supply agreements with alternative energy generation companies and sales agreements with electricity distribution utilities, Community Energy, a unit of industry leader IDERBROLA RENEWABLES, offers green energy solutions to major businesses and governments as well as to more than 110,000 residential and small-business customers. The company is also involved in the development of wind farms and supplies power directly to end-users. Community Energy, which operates under the NewWind Energy brand, purchases power primarily from wind-powered generation facilities; it also markets solar and hydroelectric energy.

Terranext focuses its earthbound geotechnical engineering expertise on the next project, as well as the one it is currently working on. An affiliate of engineering group BE&K, Terranext provides environmental engineering and consulting services to industrial, commercial, and government customers through half a dozen offices (in Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Kansas, and New Jersey). The company's services include air quality management, cultural, and natural resource conservation, energy reduction engineering, pollution prevention, water management, and site investigation and remediation. Since 1985 the woman-owned business has conducted more than 3,000 environmental projects.

E.ON AG, a power and gas company, engages in the power generation, energy trading, and gas supply businesses. The company generates electricity from coal, natural gas and oil, nuclear, water, wind, solar, and bio energy; and involves in the exploration and production of gas in the North Sea. It also engages in the storage and transportation of gas, including liquefying natural gas; carbon sourcing; and distribution of power and gas. In addition, the company buys and sells primarily electricity, natural gas, oil, coal, biomass, freight, and carbon allowances; and generates and distributes heat. It serves residential, business, industrial, regional and municipal utilities, and local public authorities. As of December 31, 2009, the company had approximately 73 giga watts of installed capacity for power generation; 33,000 kilometers (km) of power transmission networks; a 1 million km power distribution system, as well as approximately 11,600 km of gas transport pipelines, and a 100,000 km gas distribution system. It has operations primarily in Europe, Russia, and North America. The company was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Dusseldorf, Germany.

As Sgt. Joe Friday would say: "Just the facts, Ma'am." There are 88 cities in Los Angeles County, and Glendale Water & Power serves one of them. Glendale is the third-largest city in the county, with 200,000 people (about 100,000 foreign-born). Glendale has three hospitals, one health center, 30 parks, and six libraries. The utility generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to 88,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers in Glendale. The city-owned utility also provides water to 32,500 customers. Glendale Water & Power purchases water from as far away as 500 miles.

Power and light give a lot of independence to people, and City of Independence Power & Light Department (commonly referred to as Independence Power & Light) makes sure that citizens of Independence, Missouri, have all the power and light they need. The municipal electric utility company generates, purchases, transmits, and distributes reliable and affordable electricity to more than 50,000 customers. The utility, which maintains 12 generating units, 13 major substations, and more than 650 miles of power lines, serves the entire City of Independence, with the exception of Lake City Arsenal.

The Board of Public Utilities of Kansas City, Kansas (known as the Kansas City Board of Public Utilities) will help light the way. The utility provides electric transmission and distribution services to approximately 65,000 customers and water distribution services to 51,000 customers in the Kansas City metropolitan area (in Wyandotte and Johnson counties). The Kansas City Board of Public Utilities also has interests in coal, gas, and oil-fired power generation facilities. The utility is owned by the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City.

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.

NSTAR is looking to outshine its rivals through the efficiency of its regulated electric and natural gas sales, distribution, and transmission operations. The utility holding company transmits and distributes electricity to almost 1.2 million homes and businesses through NSTAR Electric and serves some 300,000 natural gas customers in Massachusetts through NSTAR Gas. The company also markets wholesale electricity, and operates liquefied natural gas (LNG) processing and storage facilities. Its NSTAR Communications unit owns about 240 miles of fiber optic network. In 2010 the company agreed to be acquired by Northeast Utilities for about $4.2 billion.

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