Avista: One is done

POST FALLS — Avista has officially closed the door on its proposed $5.3 billion merger with Canada-based Hydro One.

“While disappointed with the outcome, I want to express our deepest gratitude to everyone who worked with us on this effort over the past 18 months,” said Scott L. Morris, chairman of the board and CEO of Avista, in a joint press release Wednesday. “Avista is a strong, vibrant, and independent utility, and we look forward to building on our legacy of nearly 130 years by continuing to serve the best interests of our most important stakeholders — our valued customers, loyal employees, the communities we serve, and our shareholders.”

Avista won’t walk away empty-handed after that 18-month effort. Hydro One will pay Avista a $103 million termination fee per the conditions of the merger agreement, according to the joint press release.

Hydro One’s acting president and CEO Paul Dobson looked to the future and thanked “the teams who have worked tirelessly on the proposed merger throughout this process.”

Regulatory bodies in Washington and Idaho both pointed to the Ontario government’s 47 percent ownership of Hydro One as the main reason that it should not be allowed to purchase Avista.

With that near-majority control of Hydro One, Ontario’s new political leadership ousted Hydro One’s CEO and board of directors last fall. Regulators said that posed dangers for Avista and its customers in the Northwest.

The end of the proposed Avista-Hydro One deal came about because of Canadian politics, said Norman Semanko, spokesman for an Idaho-based group that opposed the merger.

“In the end, Hydro One of Toronto, Canada, controlled as it was by the Province of Ontario, was just not a good fit for Avista and its customers,” Semanko said.

He said that Avista customers were glad to again be able to look forward to “the continued, affordable and reliable service that our members have come to expect locally from Avista.”