Utility contacts to verify before work
Investor-owned utility
NorthWestern Energy
- Service area
- Investor-owned electric and natural gas utility serving Montana communities including Billings, Bozeman, Butte, Helena, and Great Falls.
- Contractor / service coordination
- https://www.northwesternenergy.com/
- 811 / call before you dig
- https://www.montana811.org/
Electric co-op
Flathead Electric Cooperative
- Service area
- Member-owned electric cooperative serving Flathead County, Libby, Kalispell-area communities, and nearby northwest Montana locations.
- Contractor / service coordination
- https://www.flatheadelectric.com/
- 811 / call before you dig
- https://www.montana811.org/
Gas utility
Montana-Dakota Utilities
- Service area
- Regulated natural gas and electric utility serving eastern Montana communities and connected northern plains territories.
- Contractor / service coordination
- https://www.montana-dakota.com/
- 811 / call before you dig
- https://www.montana811.org/
Water utility
Billings Public Works Water and Sewer
- Service area
- Municipal water and sewer utility serving Billings residents, businesses, fire-flow needs, and local service connections.
- Contractor / service coordination
- https://www.billingsmt.gov/1905/Water-Sewer
- 811 / call before you dig
- https://www.montana811.org/
Water utility
Missoula Water
- Service area
- Municipal water utility serving Missoula customers with public water supply, meters, and service-line coordination.
- Contractor / service coordination
- https://www.ci.missoula.mt.us/463/Water
- 811 / call before you dig
- https://www.montana811.org/
When to call which utility
Use this Montana utility map before a job changes a meter, service mast, service drop, gas appliance, water line, trench, driveway, sewer lateral, or exterior structure. For electric outages, meter pulls, temporary power, service upgrades, underground-to-overhead changes, or a panel job that requires a utility disconnect, start with the electric utility assigned to the address: NorthWestern Energy and Flathead Electric Cooperative. Rural addresses often sit in cooperative territory even when the nearest city is served by an investor-owned or municipal utility, so verify the premise before an electrician schedules the cutover. For natural-gas odors, hit lines, meter relocations, pressure questions, or appliance conversions, stop work and call the gas utility or 911 from a safe distance when there is an immediate leak; use Montana-Dakota Utilities for the listed gas distribution territory. Water utilities such as Billings Public Works Water and Sewer coordinate taps, meters, backflow requirements, main shutoffs, hydrant use, and service-line ownership questions. Municipal utilities may bundle electric, gas, water, wastewater, and stormwater, so one counter can control several approvals. Before any excavation, boring, fence post, sign, tree planting, drainage, sewer, or water-service work, file the 811 ticket through https://www.montana811.org/ and wait for marks or positive response. The utility marks public facilities; the contractor still needs private locating for owner-installed lighting, irrigation, propane, septic, yard drains, and lines beyond the meter.
811 comes before utility-side work
File a locate request before trenching, boring, planting, fencing, drainage work, sewer work, or water-service changes. Utility marks do not replace private locating on owner-installed lines.
Source: ProFix Editorial Team. Last updated 2026-06-09. Utility territories can change at parcel boundaries; verify the premise address with the utility and local 811 system before scheduling work.