ORLANDO, FL – June 21, 2022 – Montana-Dakota Utilities today was announced as an Edison Electric Institute (EEI) Emergency Response Award recipient. Presented to EEI member companies, the Emergency Response Awards recognize recovery and assistance efforts of electric companies following service disruptions caused by extreme weather or other natural events. The winners were chosen by a panel of judges following an international nomination process, and the awards were presented during EEI 2022, EEI’s annual thought leadership forum.
“Over the past year, electric companies confronted severe storms and extreme weather events, including hurricanes, tornadoes, and winter storms, that impacted customers and communities across the nation,” said EEI President Tom Kuhn. “Despite challenging conditions, Montana-Dakota and its employees worked to restore power safely and as quickly as possible following a late April blizzard. I congratulate and applaud Montana-Dakota and their employees for their continued dedication to the customers and communities that they serve, and I am honored to present them with this well-deserved award.”
Montana-Dakota’s service territory was hit with widespread power outages and unprecedented damage to its electric system from the storm. Rain that turned to a thick ice coating on powerlines coupled with wind gusts that pushed 60 mph in some areas was the main culprit. Outage restorage spanned eight days.
“We had 18,000 customers without service at the peak of the event. We had 100 linemen working to replace approximately 150 power poles and repair 350 crossarms, as well as the associated ridge irons, braces, pins, insulators and wire,” said Eric Martuscelli, vice president, field operations. “This was a team effort from day one. We were able to restore power faster than anticipated which is a testament to the hard work of our employees.”
FOR INFORMATION, CONTACT:
EEI – TRACE SCRUGGS, (202) 508-5229
MDU – MARK HANSON, (701) 530-1093
###
EEI is the association that represents all U.S. investor-owned electric companies. Our members provide electricity for more than 235 million Americans, and operate in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. As a whole, the electric power industry supports more than 7 million jobs in communities across the United States. In addition to our U.S. members, EEI has more than 65 international electric companies, with operations in more than 90 countries, as International Members, and hundreds of industry suppliers and related organizations as Associate Members.
Montana-Dakota Utilities Co. distributes natural gas and generates, transmits and distributes electricity and provides related services in the northern Great Plains. The company serves approximately 143,000 electric customers and 275,000 natural gas customers in 262 communities in North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. Montana-Dakota is a subsidiary of MDU Resources Group, Inc., a member of the S&P MidCap 400 index and the S&P High-Yield Dividend Aristocrats index and is Building a Strong America® by providing essential products and services through its regulated energy delivery and construction materials and services businesses. For more information about MDU Resources, see the company’s website at www.mdu.com. For more information about Montana-Dakota, visit www.montana-dakota.com.