Kate Black is the Vice President of Inland Oil & Gas Corporation, a third-generation oil and gas company. She graduated from North Dakota State University in 2010 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Business Administration. Kate oversees the operations at Inland as a non-operator participating in drilling, exploration and asset acquisition. In addition to her business responsibilities, she assists clients by providing mineral and well appraisals along with other mineral management consulting services.


Kate is active in the oil and gas industry and her community in several capacities. She serves on the Board of Directors for the North Dakota Petroleum Council, Theodore Roosevelt Medora Foundation, Tom and Francis Leach Foundation, Bismarck Public Schools Foundation, a past American Association of Professional Landman Director for North Dakota, past President of the Landman’s Association of North Dakota, and proudly coaches her daughters’ sports teams.


Outside of her professional endeavors, Kate is a sports fanatic, enjoys traveling, spending time with and making new friends, and cherishing time with her family. Kate and her husband Wyatt reside in Bismarck, ND with their three daughters.

Cathrine Grimsrud joined First International Bank & Trust in late 2019 following a decade in the oil and gas industry. She recognized not only the need for mineral owners to have their assets managed by industry professionals, but also the need for the oil and gas industry to have a local Bank that understands their business and what it takes for them to succeed. In 2021, was a recipient of Top 25 Women in Business from Prairie Business.



Cathrine holds law degrees from both the University of Oslo-Faculty of Law and the University of North Dakota-School of Law. She’s held several different positions including Land Manager and Legal Counsel for private and public oil companies. Cathrine has broad experience in the oil and gas transactional space primarily focusing on oil, gas, and midstream contracts, title examination, acquisitions and divestitures, due diligence, and regulatory compliance.



Cathrine is originally from Norway and loves horses, skiing, traveling, and hiking – especially in the Norwegian mountains. Cathrine resides in Bismarck with her two children, Haakon and Ella.

Nicole Kivisto is president and CEO of MDU Resources Group, a publicly traded company and member of the S&P SmallCap 600. MDU Resources delivers safe, reliable, affordable and environmentally responsible electric and natural gas distribution services to more than 1.2 million customers across the Pacific Northwest and Midwest. Additionally, the company’s pipeline business operates a more than 3,800-mile natural gas pipeline network and storage system, ensuring reliable energy delivery across the Northern Plains.

Nicole has been with MDU Resources since 1995 and has held key leadership roles across the organization. Before becoming CEO, she served as president and CEO of the corporation’s utility group, vice president of operations for two of the utility subsidiaries, and vice president, controller, and chief accounting officer.

A native of Beulah, North Dakota, Nicole holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Minnesota–Moorhead. She is also a graduate of the Carlson School of Management’s Minnesota Executive Program and the Utility Executive Course at the University of Idaho.