Document

1.Purpose. The purpose of this Policy is to describe the circumstances in which Executive Officers will be required to repay or return Erroneously Awarded Compensation to members of the Company Group. This Policy is intended to comply with, and will be interpreted to be consistent with, Section 954 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, as codified in Section 10D of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), Rule 10D-1 promulgated under the Exchange Act (“Rule 10D-1”) and Listing Rule 5608 of the corporate governance rules of The Nasdaq Stock Market (“Nasdaq”) (the “Listing Standards”). Capitalized terms not otherwise defined have the meaning set forth in Section 3. Each Executive Officer shall be required to sign and return to the Company the Acknowledgement Form attached hereto as Exhibit A pursuant to which such Executive Officer will agree to be bound by the terms and comply with this Policy.

(a)In the event of an Accounting Restatement, the Company must recover reasonably promptly the amount of any Erroneously Awarded Compensation, determined in accordance with this Policy and applicable laws and regulations. The Company’s obligation to recover Erroneously Awarded Compensation is not dependent on the Company’s filing of restated financial statements. The recovery of Erroneously Awarded Compensation is required on a “no fault” basis, without regard to whether any misconduct occurred or an Executive Officer’s responsibility for the erroneous financial statements.

(b)In the event of an Accounting Restatement, the Committee will have broad discretion to determine the appropriate means and methods of recovery of Erroneously Awarded Compensation based on all applicable facts and circumstances and taking into account the time value of money and the cost to shareholders of delaying recovery. Such means and methods of recovery may include, without limitation, (i) seeking reimbursement of all or part of any cash or equity-based award, (ii) cancelling prior cash or equity-based awards, whether vested or unvested or paid or unpaid, (iii) cancelling or offsetting against any planned future cash or equity-based awards, (iv) forfeiture of deferred compensation, subject to compliance with Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations promulgated thereunder, (v) entering into a repayment plan and (vi) any other method authorized by applicable law or contract. Subject to compliance with any applicable law, the Committee may effect recovery under this Policy from any amount otherwise payable to the Executive Officer, including amounts payable to such individual under any otherwise applicable Company plan or program, including base salary, bonuses or compensation previously deferred. For the avoidance of doubt, except as set forth in Section 2(c) below, in no event may the Company Group accept an amount that is less than the amount of Erroneously Awarded Compensation in satisfaction of an Executive Officer’s obligations hereunder.

(i)The direct expenses paid to a third party to assist in enforcing the Policy against an Executive Officer would exceed the amount to be recovered, after the Company has made a reasonable attempt to recover the applicable Erroneously Awarded Compensation, documented such attempts and provided such documentation to Nasdaq;

would be impracticable to recover any amount of Erroneously Awarded Compensation based on violation of home country law, the Company has obtained an opinion of home country counsel, acceptable to Nasdaq, that recovery would result in such a violation and a copy of the opinion is provided to Nasdaq; or

(iii)Recovery would likely cause an otherwise tax-qualified retirement plan, under which benefits are broadly available to employees of the Company Group, to fail to meet the requirements of 26 U.S.C. 401(a)(13) or 26 U.S.C. 411(a) and regulations thereunder. For purposes of clarity, this clawback exception only applies to tax-qualified retirement plans and does not apply to other plans, including long term disability, life insurance, and supplemental executive retirement plans, or any other compensation that is based on Incentive-Based Compensation in such plans, such as earnings accrued on notional amounts of Incentive-Based Compensation contributed to such plans.

(a)“Accounting Restatement” shall mean an accounting restatement (i) due to the material noncompliance of the Company with any financial reporting requirement under the securities laws, including any required accounting restatement to correct an error in previously issued financial restatements that is material to the previously issued financial statements (a “Big R” restatement), or (ii) that corrects an error that is not material to previously issued financial statements, but would result in a material misstatement if the error were not corrected in the current period or left uncorrected in the current period (a “little r” restatement).

(c)“Clawback Eligible Incentive Compensation” shall mean, in connection with an Accounting Restatement and with respect to each individual who served as an Executive Officer at any time during the applicable performance period for any Incentive-based Compensation (whether or not such Executive Officer is serving at the time the Erroneously Awarded Compensation is required to be repaid to the Company Group), all Incentive-based Compensation Received by such Executive Officer (i) on or after the Effective Date, (ii) after beginning service as an Executive Officer, (iii) while the Company has a class of securities listed on a national securities exchange or a national securities association, and (iv) during the applicable Clawback Period.

(d)“Clawback Period” shall mean, with respect to any Accounting Restatement, the three completed fiscal years of the Company immediately preceding the Restatement Date and any transition period (that results from a change in the Company’s fiscal year) of less than nine months within or immediately following those three completed fiscal years.

(i)“Erroneously Awarded Compensation” shall mean, with respect to each Executive Officer in connection with an Accounting Restatement, the amount of Clawback Eligible Incentive Compensation that exceeds the amount of Incentive-based Compensation that otherwise would have been Received had it been determined based on the restated amounts, computed without regard to any taxes paid. For Incentive-based Compensation based on (or derived from) stock price or total shareholder return where the amount of Erroneously Awarded Compensation is not subject to mathematical recalculation directly from the information in the applicable Accounting Restatement, the

amount shall be determined by the Committee based on a reasonable estimate of the effect of the Accounting Restatement on the stock price or total shareholder return upon which the Incentive-based Compensation was Received (in which case, the Company shall maintain documentation of such determination of that reasonable estimate and provide such documentation to the NASDAQ)

(j)“Executive Officer” shall mean the Company’s president, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer (or if there is no such accounting officer, the controller), any vice-president of the Company in charge of a principal business unit, division, or function (such as sales, administration, or finance), any other officer who performs a policy-making function, or any other person who performs similar policy-making functions for the Company. Executive officers of the Company’s subsidiaries are deemed Executive Officers if they perform such policy making functions for the Company. Policy-making function is not intended to include policy-making functions that are not significant. Identification of an executive officer for purposes of this Policy would include at a minimum executive officers identified in the Form 10-K pursuant to Item 401(b) of Regulation S-K.

(k)“Financial Reporting Measures” shall mean measures that are determined and presented in accordance with the accounting principles used in preparing the Company’s financial statements, and all other measures that are derived wholly or in part from such measures. Stock price and total shareholder return (and any measures that are derived wholly or in part from stock price or total shareholder return) shall for purposes of this Policy be considered Financial Reporting Measures. For the avoidance of doubt, a Financial Reporting Measure need not be presented in the Company’s financial statements or included in a filing with the SEC.

(l)“Incentive-based Compensation” shall mean any compensation that is granted, earned or vested based wholly or in part upon the attainment of a Financial Reporting Measure. For purposes of clarification, equity awards that vest exclusively upon completion of a specified employment period, without any performance condition, and bonus awards that are discretionary or based on subjective goals or goals unrelated to financial reporting measures, do not constitute incentive-based compensation. Incentive-Based Compensation, however, includes compensation that is in any plan, other than tax-qualified retirement plans, including long term disability, life insurance, and supplemental executive retirement plans, and any other compensation that is based on such Incentive-Based Compensation, such as earnings accrued on notional amounts of Incentive-Based Compensation contributed to such plans.

(o)“Received” shall, with respect to any Incentive-based Compensation, mean actual or deemed receipt, and Incentive-based Compensation shall be deemed received in the Company’s fiscal period during which the Financial Reporting Measure specified in the Incentive-based Compensation award is attained, even if payment or grant of the Incentive-based Compensation occurs after the end of that period.

(p)“Restatement Date” shall mean the earlier to occur of (i) the date the Board, a committee of the Board or the officers of the Company authorized to take such action if Board action is not required, concludes, or reasonably should have concluded, that the Company is required to prepare an Accounting Restatement, or (ii) the date a court, regulator or other legally authorized body directs the Company to prepare an Accounting Restatement.

5.Indemnification Prohibition. No member of the Company Group shall be permitted to indemnify any Executive Officer against (i) the loss of any Erroneously Awarded Compensation that is repaid, returned or recovered pursuant to the terms of this Policy, or (ii) any claims relating to the Company Group’s enforcement of its rights under this Policy. Further, no member of the Company Group shall pay or reimburse the cost of insurance against recovery of any Erroneously Awarded Compensation, or enter into any agreement that exempts any Incentive-based Compensation from the application of this Policy or that waives the Company Group’s right to recovery of any Erroneously Awarded Compensation and this Policy shall supersede any such agreement (whether entered into before, on or after the Effective Date).

6.Administration and Interpretation. This Policy shall be administered by the Committee. The Committee is authorized to interpret and construe this Policy and to make all determinations necessary, appropriate, or advisable for the administration of this Policy, in each case, to the extent permitted under the Listing Standards and in compliance with (or pursuant to an exemption from the application of) Section 409A of the Code. Any determinations made by the Committee shall be final, conclusive, and binding on all affected individuals, including the Company, its affiliates and subsidiaries, its stockholders and Executive Officers, and need not be uniform with respect to each person covered by this Policy.

In the administration of this Policy, the Committee is authorized and directed to consult with the full Board or such other committees of the Board as may be necessary or appropriate as to matters within the scope of such other committee’s responsibility and authority. Subject to any limitation at applicable law, the Committee may authorize and empower any officer or employee of the Company to take any and all actions necessary or appropriate to carry out the purpose and intent of this Policy (other than with respect to any recovery under this Policy involving such officer or employee). Any action or inaction by the Committee with respect to an Executive Officer under this Policy in no way limits the Committee’s decision to act or not to act with respect to any other Executive Officer under this Policy or under any similar policy, agreement or arrangement, nor shall any such action or inaction serve as a waiver of any rights the Company may have against any Executive Officer other than as set forth in this Policy.

8.Amendment; Termination. The Committee may amend this Policy from time to time in its discretion and shall amend this Policy as it deems necessary, including as and when it determines that it is legally required by any federal securities laws, SEC rule or the rules of any national securities exchange or national securities association on which the Company’s securities are listed or to comply with (or maintain an exemption from the application of) Section 409A of the Code. The Committee may terminate this Policy at any time. Notwithstanding anything in this Section 8 to the contrary, no amendment or termination of this Policy shall be effective if such amendment or termination would (after taking into account any actions taken by the Company contemporaneously with such amendment or termination) cause the Company to violate any federal securities laws, SEC rule or the rules of any national securities exchange or national securities association on which the Company’s securities are listed.

9.Other Recoupment Rights; No Additional Payments. The Committee intends that this Policy will be applied to the fullest extent of the law. The Committee may require that any employment agreement, equity award agreement, or any other agreement entered into on or after the Effective Date shall, as a condition to the grant of any benefit thereunder, require an Executive Officer to agree to abide by the terms of this Policy. Any right of recoupment under this Policy is in addition to, and not in lieu of, any other remedies or rights of recoupment that may be available to the Company Group under applicable law, regulation or rule or pursuant to the terms of any similar policy in any employment agreement, equity award agreement, or similar agreement and any other legal remedies available to the Company Group; provided that there shall be no duplication of recovery under this Policy and 15 U.S.C. Section 7243 (Section 304 of The Sarbanes-Oxley of 2002).

By signing below, the undersigned acknowledges and confirms that the undersigned has received and reviewed a copy of the NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc., Policy for the Recovery of Erroneously Awarded Compensation (the “Policy”). Capitalized terms used but not otherwise defined in this Acknowledgement Form (this “Acknowledgement Form”) shall have the meanings ascribed to such terms in the Policy.

By signing this Acknowledgement Form, the undersigned acknowledges and agrees that the undersigned is and will continue to be subject to the Policy and that the Policy will apply both during and after the undersigned’s employment with the Company Group. Further, by signing below, the undersigned agrees to abide by the terms of the Policy, including, without limitation, by returning any Erroneously Awarded Compensation (as defined in the Policy) to the Company Group to the extent required by, and in a manner permitted by, the Policy.


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