Simcoe and York residents will save through hydro merger: Barrie mayor
PowerStream, Enersource, Horizon Utilities and Hydro One Brampton are merging to become Alectra next month

simcoe.com
Jan. 17, 2017
By Chris Simon

Simcoe County households will soon receive electricity from the second-largest municipally owned utility company in North America.

So what, exactly, does this week’s unveiling of Alectra, the long-anticipated merger of PowerStream, Enersource, Horizon Utilities and Hydro One Brampton, mean to thousands of local residents? Well, the average hydro bill is expected to decrease by about $40 per year, as merger efficiencies are achieved over the next decade. The change is also expected to improve system reliability.

Under Alectra’s new structure, the corporate head office will be located in Mississauga, with operation centres in Barrie, Markham and Brampton.

Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman said the move will ultimately benefit local customers. Basically, bigger is assumed to be better.

“This was a milestone day,” he said. “Your power bill will have a different name on it, but the biggest change will be in the coming years as we have the scale and ability to bring people some savings on their power bill, badly needed at this point.”

PowerStream currently serves about 380,000 customers in communities including Alliston, Aurora, Barrie, Beeton, Bradford West Gwillimbury, Markham, Penetanguishene, Richmond Hill, Thornton, Tottenham, Vaughan, Collingwood, Stayner, Creemore and Thornbury.

According to PowerStream, economies of scale and the spreading of administration costs over a bigger base will come from the merger - resulting in savings for customers.

“We are excited to launch Alectra and move forward to deliver best-in-class customer service and optimal returns for shareholders,” incoming Alectra president and CEO Brian Bentz, who is also PowerStream’s current president, stated in a press release. “Our enthusiasm for pursuing new opportunities and being innovative to better serve our customers is boundless. We aspire to be a model of excellence in consolidation for Ontario and beyond.”

The groundwork for the merger was laid in April 2015, when representatives from each organization announced an intention to form a new utility with the goal of serving nearly one million people in Simcoe, Hamilton, St. Catharines, and York and Peel regions. The move was approved by the Ontario Energy Board last month.

Under the plan, PowerStream, Enersource and Horizon will officially merge Feb. 1 and then purchase the Brampton utility Feb. 28.

Other municipalities should explore these types of mergers in the future, said Minister of Energy Glenn Thibeault.

“The launch of Alectra is a win-win for both electricity ratepayers and for municipalities in communities across the region,” he said. “It will result in an improved company that is better positioned to serve customers who will also benefit from savings on electricity rates. I am pleased that each of the municipalities involved recognized these benefits, and I hope more municipal leaders across Ontario will follow their lead.”

Check Simcoe.com for more on this developing story.