Business & Economy
Business & Economy

Hay Is For Horses – Until It’s Gone
Erin Tomson bringing her horses into the family barn. Her mother Dee used to board horses at their ranch in Pullman, WA. The price of hay is making it harder

Massive New Climate Law Could Give Pacific Northwest Green Businesses A Boost
Companies large and small around the Pacific Northwest say they are excited by growth opportunities that may flow from the climate, healthcare and tax package signed by President Biden on Tuesday. Turbocharged federal spending could benefit the region’s green energy sector in particular, although congressional Republicans remain dubious that Americans on the whole will come out ahead.

Hydrogen Valley Vision For Southwest Washington Gets Boost From Aussies’ Proposed Plant
An Australian company is eying property next to the soon-to-close coal power plant in Centralia, Washington, to build a big hydrogen fuel production facility. Fortescue Future Industries went public with its plans during a hydrogen symposium hosted by the Economic Alliance of Lewis County on Thursday.

Big Factory For Electric Car Battery Materials Coming To Moses Lake, Washington
San Francisco Bay area company Sila Nanotechnologies purchased a vacant factory in Moses Lake, Washington, and announced plans Tuesday to open a big operation there to produce advanced battery materials to power electric cars.

Green Aluminum? Complex Deal Seeks To Restart The Last Aluminum Smelter In The NW And Cut Pollution
A complex deal is taking shape to revive the Pacific Northwest’s last remaining aluminum smelter. Alcoa idled its Intalco Works smelter near Ferndale, Washington, a year-and-a-half ago and laid off virtually all the workers there. The plan to bring this industry back involves a new owner, cash from taxpayers and an uncertain new contract for cut-rate wholesale power.

Santa’s Reindeer To Get Competition: Amazon Flight-Testing Package Delivery Drones In Pendleton
E-commerce giant Amazon confirmed to public radio that it has begun flight testing of package delivery drones at a test range in Pendleton, Oregon, as well as continuing near Seattle and elsewhere. Routine delivery of online orders to consumers by aerial drones remains a long ways off, though.

When Will Drone Delivery Be A Thing? Slow To Take Off, But Now Building In Bend
With all the news about supply chain problems, you might be wondering how to get your online purchases on time. If only the promised future of aerial delivery by drone could be realized during the upcoming holiday shopping season.

In A Hot NW Housing Market, Even Isolated Point Roberts Is Seeing Prices Sizzle
How hot is the Pacific Northwest real estate market? So hot that even in an isolated exclave such as Point Roberts, Washington, home prices are sizzling and some properties are changing hands sight unseen.

How New Federal Rules Could Make It Easier To Buy Hearing Aids Or Fix Your Phone
President Biden unveiled a new plan on Friday taking aim at powerful industries where a handful of players have so much market clout that they can drive up prices, depress wages and make it hard for small companies to break in.

A $500 Sign-On Bonus To Deliver Pizzas? Here’s What To Know About Hiring Incentives
With a record 9.3 million jobs open in the U.S. as of April, and a workforce in no hurry to get back to work, a growing number of employers are looking to hiring bonuses to fill their ranks. Long a tradition on Wall Street, sign-on bonuses are rare in low-wage work such as fast food, warehousing and food delivery. Now, as the economy has picked up, hiring bonuses are everywhere.

Jeff Bezos Built Amazon 27 Years Ago. He Now Steps Down As CEO At Critical Time
Jeff Bezos stepped down as Amazon’s CEO on Monday, exactly 27 years since he started the e-commerce giant in a garage in West Bellevue, Wash.

15 Months Into Restrictions, Washington Mostly Drops COVID Business And Crowd Limitations
Fifteen months after Washington state’s first “stay at home” order was issued in response to the coronavirus, businesses across the state are now allowed to return to pre-pandemic operations.