NorthWestern announces reduced rates

HELENA (AP) - NorthWestern Corp. said it will be making a small reduction in rates for electricity and natural gas users.

The company, now on a system where it adjusts rates more often to reflect fluctuations in the cost of buying energy, said it wants to lower rates 2.7 percent for natural gas and nearly 6 percent for electricity. They were to take effect on Labor Day.

The firm, in a deal worked out with regulators, now adjusts prices monthly, instead of annually for its 300,000 Montana customers.

''What you're seeing is one of the benefits that we said would exist under the (monthly) tracker...