Cambridge and North Dumfries Hydro’s bid to purchase Brant County Power is expected to close by the end of the month.
The deal received approval from the Ontario Energy Board last week, according to a press release issued Monday by the Cambridge utility.
First announced in May, the sale will net Brant County a total of $40.2 million.
The county had begun exploring opportunities to sell its hydro utility following a 2012 recommendation that Ontario’s power companies merge and consolidate until far fewer remain than the 73 in existence at the time.
Brant County Power, which currently has about 10,000 customers in the Paris, St. George, Mount Pleasant and Burford areas, had been providing the county with a surplus of approximately $500,000 per year in recent years.
Cambridge and North Dumfries Hydro officials have said that no Brant County Power employees will lose their jobs as a result of the deal, the current Paris operations centre will remain open for at least five years, and hydro rates in Brant County will stay at their current levels for four years.
