A utility company headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota, delivering regulated electricity and natural gas across eight US states. Its roots reach back to 1883, when the Black Hills Electric Light Company lit up Deadwood during the gold rush, and the modern firm took shape in 1941 under new federal law. Named for the Black Hills region, it even runs its own coal mine to fuel nearby power plants.
Electric Utilities rate gains and Ready Wyoming drove Q2 operating income up 17.6%, but merger costs and higher interest expense limited net income growth to 38.9%.
Electric Utilities reversed its recent declines, lifting consolidated results. rose 3.1% to $452.8 million and climbed 17.6% to $97.0 million as new rates and the Ready Wyoming transmission project took effect, while reached $38.2 million. The pending NorthWestern merger continues to add costs, but the core regulated business is strengthening.
Key takeaways
Electric Utilities rose $12.1 million to $58.4 million, driven by new rates and and the Ready Wyoming transmission project coming online.
Gas Utilities increased $7.6 million to $43.1 million, with new rate and in Nebraska and Kansas as the primary driver.
Corporate and Other operating loss widened by $5.2 million to $7.2 million, mainly from $4.1 million in costs related to the pending NorthWestern merger.
Section summaries
Management's Discussion and Analysis
Q2 2026 net income rose to $38.2M driven by new electric and gas rates and rider recovery, partly offset by merger costs.
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Consolidated grew $14.5M to $97.0M in Q2 2026, led by a $12.1M increase in Electric Utilities from new rates and the Ready Wyoming project.
Gas Utilities rose $7.6M to $43.1M in Q2 2026, primarily from new rates and in Nebraska and Kansas.
Net rose $2.7 million to $51.6 million, reflecting higher rates on increased debt balances.
Six-month reached $485.5 million, up $113.7 million , driven by the Lange II project and Wyoming Electric's long lead-time generation equipment.
Available liquidity fell to $728.3 million from $929.6 million at year-end 2025, partly due to a $300 million senior note repayment.
What changed
The Wygen I and Pueblo Airport unplanned outages that depressed Electric Utilities results through 2025 appear resolved: Electric Utilities rose $12.1 million in Q2, its first quarterly increase since Q2 2025.
The $300 million senior notes due January 2026 were repaid during the quarter, reducing available liquidity but removing the refinancing risk flagged in every prior filing.
NorthWestern merger costs continued at $4.1 million for the quarter, down from the $8.4 million recorded in Q3 2025 but above the $4.6 million in Q1 2026, suggesting a variable but persistent expense run-rate.
Gas Utilities recovered from the $13.2 million weather-driven margin loss in Q1, posting a $7.6 million gain in Q2 as new rates in Nebraska and Kansas took effect.
What to watch
Whether Electric Utilities sustains its growth in the seasonally weak Q3, now that the Ready Wyoming project is contributing and generation outages have abated.
The pace and total cost of NorthWestern merger-related expenses as regulatory approvals progress, and whether quarterly deal costs stabilize near the $4.1 million level or escalate.
The interest rate and terms achieved on the $400 million notes due January 2027, given that rose another $2.7 million this quarter and stands at $3.99 billion.
Full-year generation against a capital plan running at an annualized rate near $1 billion, with six-month at negative $114.2 million.
Corporate and Other operating loss widened by $5.2M to $7.2M, mainly due to $4.1M in costs related to the pending merger with NorthWestern.
Net increased $2.7M to $51.6M, driven by higher rates on increased debt balances.
Six-month rose $113.7M to $485.5M, largely for the Lange II project and Wyoming Electric's long lead-time generation equipment.
Available liquidity stood at $728.3M as of June 30, 2026, down from $929.6M at year-end 2025, partly due to a $300M senior note repayment.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
There have been no material changes to our quantitative and qualitative disclosures about market risk previously disclosed in Item 7A of our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K.
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There have been no material changes to our quantitative and qualitative disclosures about market risk previously disclosed in Item 7A of our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K.
For information regarding legal proceedings, see Note 3 of the Condensed Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements and Note 3 in Item 8 of our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K.
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For information regarding legal proceedings, see Note 3 of the Condensed Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements and Note 3 in Item 8 of our 2025 Annual Report on Form 10-K.