Calgary mayor wants Enmax to explore sale of U.S. power company, run city’s water utility

Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas wants Enmax to explore selling its U.S. power company and run the city's water utility.

Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas says “political volatility” and risk should prompt Enmax to explore a sale of its American utility company, Versant Power.

In 2020, Enmax closed a $1.8 billion deal to take ownership Versant Power in Maine, which operates electricity transmission and distribution in six counties.

“It’s a very uncomfortable fit, in my view,” the mayor said Wednesday. “That said, I understand that Versant utility down in the United States, it is fully self-supported.”

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“I have some serious concerns just around the volatility, the risk that’s involved for that return. It might be profitable today, but I really need to better understand why it’s in our strategic interest as Calgarians to have long-term ownership there,” Farkas added.

Longtime councillor Andre Chabot disagrees with the idea being floated by the mayor.

“There’s no point in getting rid of (Versant). It continues to increase in value and maybe sometime down the road, we want to dispose of all of those assets, but for now we’re getting revenue from residents in the United States contributing to our bottom line,” Chabot said.

“It’s kind of hard to say no to a gift horse like that,” Chabot added.

Last week, Enmax declared a $64 million dividend to the city and announced increased earnings for 2025 that are “primarily attributable to an increase in transmission and distribution margins for Versant Power,” according to the company’s financial reporting.

A statement from Enmax says Versant Power is part of the company’s long-term strategy and “there has been no discussion at the board level regarding divesting Versant.”

A new pitch for water utility management

The mayor also said Enmax, which is owned by the City of Calgary, should be considered to run the city’s troubled water utility system.

An independent report looking into the 2024 rupture of the Bearspaw South feeder main listed a number of recommendations for how to best avoid another large-scale water main break, including a transition of the water utility to a municipally-owned corporation.

“We believe that moving to a formal corporate structure wholly owned by the city entrenches those disciplines of a board with fiduciary duty,” said Siegfried Kiefer, the panel’s chair, back in January.

Farkas has committed to taking action on all of the panel’s recommendations.

“I think that when we look at, say, for example, Enmax’s track record of success, for many decades now returning a really good quality product, quality service level, affordable compared to competitors, good management. There’s a number of reasons why we’d potentially be looking at it,” the mayor said.

No formal motion has been tabled publicly to explore Enmax taking over Calgary’s water service delivery.

“As a utility with strong governance and operational discipline, ENMAX is well positioned to operate water services, and we welcome the opportunity to work with the city to explore this option,” reads a statement from Alexandra Frison, the director of communications with Enmax.

“Water aligns with Enmax’s regulated utility growth strategy.”