NW Natural (nyse: nwn) is a 150-year old natural gas local distribution and storage company headquartered in Portland, OR, with a customer growth rate consistently above the national average. NW Natural serves more than 662,000 customers in Oregon and Southwest Washington. In keeping with its steady growth, the company has increased dividends paid to shareholders for 53 consecutive years, a feat matched by few publicly traded companies. NW Natural operates gas storage facilities in its service territory and provides gas storage services to other energy companies in the Northwest. NW Natural is developing a new gas storage facility at Gill Ranch near Fresno, California, and plans to develop a new gas transmission pipeline called Palomar in Oregon to provide enhanced gas deliverability and reliability for the region.