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When the 2023 Minnesota legislative session ended in May, it offered the potential to be one of the most meaningful in memory. Faced with a state record surplus of $17.5 billion, the Minnesota House and Senate agreed on a two-year state budget totaling approximately $70 billion that will reach all...
At Great River Energy, we encourage our member-owner electric cooperatives to pursue electric uses that save consumers money, reduce emissions and improve overall efficiency of the electric grid. As we work to modernize the grid, we believe that members can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions by participating in the electrification...
Electric cooperatives aren’t motivated by profits. They’re motivated by members. At Great River Energy, our 27 member organizations serve communities across Minnesota, and members have a voice, helping shape our programs, policies, and initiatives.Electric cooperatives are democratic organizationsWhen we say that our cooperative is under democratic member control, we mean...
Members make electric cooperatives work
Nov 16 2023Members of electric cooperatives work together toward a common goal: a utility relationship that is not controlled by profits or investors, but is democratically governed by its users. At Great River Energy, we have 27 member cooperatives in the state of Minnesota that distribute electricity to more than 685,000 member-consumers.Members...
Electric cooperatives are not-for-profit, member-owned utility companies. Great River Energy is part of the Touchstone Energy Cooperative network — a nationwide alliance of more than 750 local, consumer-owned electric cooperatives in 46 states. These co-ops deliver power and energy solutions to more than 40 million members each day, many of...
Representatives from the city of North Branch join the owners and other partners of Boka Haven in holding a ceremonial groundbreaking for the new 40-unit assisted living center. The facility is being constructed at 5251 386th Street in North Branch and is expected to be completed sometime in July 2024.Click...
Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the most talked about subjects of the year, anticipated to touch almost all facets of modern life. Hotly debated from dinner tables to Hollywood to the halls of Congress, synthetic data will completely overtake real data in AI models by 2030, according to market...
The U.S. Department of Energy has selected dozens of electric cooperatives to pursue contracts worth about $650 million from its $10.5 billion Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships Program.On Oct. 18, DOE announced the first round of potential GRIP grants totaling $3.5 billion for 58 grid projects in 44 states. Selected...
When Charles Blandin donated his wealth to serve the people of Grand Rapids and Itasca County 80 years ago, the community around his paper mill looked different than it does today.And while Itasca County residents have lived through many changes in the past eight decades, today’s community may be facing...
Have you ever been on a retailer’s website and seen an amazing deal only to find that it ships from overseas and won’t arrive for more than a month? Or have you had to wait several weeks for delivery even though the manufacturer is only a few hundred miles away?...
Site Selection Group: Top 10 Economic Incentive Program Types to Target During the Site Selection Process
Oct 17 2023The pursuit of economic incentives has become ingrained in the site selection process. Economic incentives are offered by public and private governmental and economic development organizations at the federal, state, county and municipal levels. They are pursued for all types of projects including call centers, data centers, distribution centers, headquarters,...
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) announced a $5 million grant round for eligible communities facing fossil fuel power plant closures to help them craft and deploy economic growth strategies after the power plants close.DEED's Energy Transition Grant Program is designed to help so-called "energy transition communities"...
Site Selection Group, a full-service location advisory, economic incentives and real estate services firm, has a longstanding history of working on projects in the food & beverage sector. Due in part to our specialization in this sector, as well as high market activity, we closely monitor the dynamics and availability...
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) launched its latest effort to provide high-speed broadband to Minnesota.DEED recently released a Request for Proposals (RFP), which will award $50 million in broadband grants to providers across Minnesota.DEED invested $167 million across two grant rounds since December 2022 to connect...
A new analysis finds that electric cooperatives have a wide-ranging economic impact in the United States, supporting nearly 623,000 jobs with $51 billion in pay and benefits each year while contributing hundreds of billions of dollars to the economy over a five-year period.According to this analysis, co-ops’ activity contributed $554...
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The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development State Director Kate Bolz today announced that the Department is accepting applications for funding to help create jobs and promote economic growth in rural communities.USDA is making loans and grants available under the Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant (REDLG), the...
DEED: Highlighting Employment Opportunities and Economic Impact During Manufacturing Month
Oct 2 2023October is Manufacturing Month in Minnesota, in recognition of the critical importance of manufacturing to the state's economy and to highlight the many career opportunities in this vital industry. The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) partners with the Minnesota State Advanced Manufacturing Center of Excellence, manufacturers across...
As a field, economic development has long recognized the benefits of businesses in clusters working together to support one another. How strange, then, that we often fail to fully implement the insights that underlie these theories in our own work.Now more than ever, regional cooperation is the most fundamental building...
New drill hole results have revealed a 139 percent increase in the mineralization thickness compared to a previous drill hole in the same area, according to a Talon Metals Corp. news release. Talon Metals officials say they're encouraged by the results and are continuing follow-up drilling. “This is the second thickest...
In May, USDA made $9.7 billion available under the New ERA program for member-owned rural electric cooperatives to help rural Americans benefit from clean, affordable and reliable energy.Rural electric cooperatives are the backbone of America’s power delivery, and this funding represents the largest increase in investment in rural America’s electric...
Recently, the Chamber held its latest event in the Women in Business Series, this time at Post Consumer brands. Speakers included 2023-2024 Chamber Board Chair, Jill Bollettieri of Post Consumer Brands, as well as a panel of female business leaders who took a broad and intersectional approach to their discussion...
Electric cooperatives flooded the U.S. Department of Agriculture with interest in a new $9.7 billion clean energy program, submitting proposals for hundreds of projects that would require at least twice that amount and launch $93 billion in new investment across rural America.USDA announced on Sept. 27 that it had received...
Minn Post: New DEED commissioner on Greater Minnesota’s economy and implementing ‘massive’ new spending
Sep 27 2023Matt Varilek is fortunate as the new commissioner of Minnesota’s Department of Employment and Economic Development to have internet that is fast enough for him to have remote meetings at home in rural Benton County.But not everyone in Greater Minnesota has that ability, which is why delivering broadband across the...
Star Tribune: Minnesota steps up efforts to help employers fill jobs as tight labor market continues
Sep 27 2023Minnesota has added jobs in eight of the past 12 months.It's still not enough, Matt Varilek, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), said at an event to kick off Workforce Development Month in the state.The message is not new, but state and city officials hammered...
Tom Lambrecht