Exhibit 99.4

                      Press Release Announcing Election of
                    Harry J. Pearce as Chairman of the Board









                                       13




                MDU Resources Names Pearce Chairman of the Board

BISMARCK, N.D. - Aug. 17, 2006 -- MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) announced
today the election of Harry J. Pearce, 63, lead director, to the position of
chairman of the board. Pearce replaces Martin A. White, who retired today as
chairman and chief executive officer. Terry D. Hildestad was named president and
chief executive officer for the corporation and was also named to the board.

"Harry is the ideal person to be MDU Resources' next chairman," said White. "In
his career, Harry rose to the heights of success in corporate America, and he
did it while maintaining the highest standards of integrity. He gained the
respect of all those who came in contact with him. On our board, Harry has shown
visionary leadership in many areas, but especially in corporate governance,
director education, performance-based compensation and risk management. His
dedication to MDU Resources' shareholders, customers and employees is evident in
everything he does, and I am confident he will guide the corporation to
accomplish great things in the coming years."

Pearce, a North Dakota native, has served on MDU Resources' board since 1997,
serving on the Audit Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee as
well as serving as a member and chairman of the Compensation Committee. He was
elected vice chairman in 2000 and lead director in 2001.

As a senior partner in the law firm of Pearce & Durick in Bismarck, Pearce
represented General Motors and other industrial companies nationwide in product
liability cases for 15 years. He went to work for GM, starting as associate
general counsel in October 1985, rising to vice president and general counsel,
executive vice president and finally vice chairman and director. He retired from
that position in 2001 and was elected chairman of the Hughes Electronics
Corporation Board of Directors, an office he held until May 2003.

In addition to his service to MDU Resources, Pearce currently serves as chairman
of the board for Nortel Networks Corp., chairman of The Marrow Foundation,
chairman of the National Defense University Foundation and president of the
Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Research Foundation. He serves on the boards of
Marriott International, Inc., Howard University and Northwestern University. He
is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and a member of the
International Society of Barristers. He is a founding member of the Minority
Counsel Demonstration Program of the American Bar Association's Commission on
Opportunities for Minorities in the Profession.




                                       14