Portland-based Iberdrola Renewables has broken ground on a biomass energy plant in Lakeview that will bring much-needed jobs to an area with chronically high unemployment rates.

As bad as the job market has been for 2010, the capital-raising market has been surprisingly good, and this year’s finalists at Venture Northwest offered strong reasons as to why.

  All “latest” numbers are for September 2010 unless otherwise noted. Latest Month Previous Month Previous Year Annual Change EMPLOYMENT/BUSINESS LISTINGS Total employment State of Oregon, thousands 1,783.4 1,786.1 1,750.1 1.9% Total unemployment State of Oregon, thousands 196.3 203.5 201.1 -2.4% Unemployment rate Ore. civilian labor force, seasonally adjusted 10.6% 10.6% 11.0% -0.4 Portland/Vancouver MSA; … Read more

Applications for new Oregon corporations and limited liability companies fell 8.6% and 5.4% year-to-date in September.

Mark Frohnmayer mixes pizza, yoga and electric cars to create a sustainable business — and life — in Eugene.

The influential reality TV show Project Runway has put Portland and its designers in the fashion spotlight. But the bright lights haven’t brought stability to the local fashion industry.

Need cheap technology or want to buy a business? The sweet deals pile up as the downturn drags on.

Just as the economic downturn caused business to buckle down and focus on the basics, employment lawyers are seeing a return to the most basic workplace cases.

Oregon State University food microbiologist Mark Daeschel has figured out a way to keep wine from getting funky.