A wholly owned Ontario subsidiary of EPCOR Utilities Inc. (EPCOR) has received Ontario Energy Board approval to complete the purchase of Collus PowerStream Corp., an electricity distributor to more than 17,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in Collingwood, Stayner, Creemore and Thornbury in southwestern Ontario.

Subject to the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions, EPCOR's subsidiary will acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding shares of Collingwood PowerStream Utility Corp. (Holdco), which owns Collus PowerStream. Currently, Holdco is jointly owned by the Town of Collingwood and Alectra Utilities Corporation (Alectra). On the closing date, the Town will acquire Alectra's shares in Holdco and then sell 100% of the shares in Holdco to EPCOR's subsidiary. Completion of the acquisition is expected to occur on October 1, 2018.

"Today's announcement marks another critical step towards EPCOR's first electricity distribution business acquisition in Ontario. We are excited to become a part of these communities, and look forward to delivering the high level of customer service they are accustomed to," said Stuart Lee, EPCOR President & CEO.

Collus PowerStream will be EPCOR's second acquisition in Ontario, following the acquisition of the assets and operations of Natural Resource Gas Limited in the Aylmer region in November 2017.

"EPCOR is a trusted operator with more than 125 years of experience providing safe and reliable electricity service, and supporting the communities where it operates. We are pleased to welcome EPCOR to our community," said Collus PowerStream Vice-President of Operations, Larry Irwin.