Fortis Inc. is a

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. The city spans and is the easternmost city in North Ameri ...

-based international diversified electric utility

holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

. It operates in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

, and the Caribbean. In 2015, it earned . Fortis was formed in 1987, when shareholders of the regulated transmission and distribution utility Newfoundland Light & Power Co. voted to form a separate holding company. NL&P shares were exchanged for Fortis shares on a one-to-one basis, with the regulated NL&P becoming a 100% owned subsidiary.

Expansion

The company expanded into Western Canada in 2003 with its purchase of

Aquila, Inc. Aquila, Inc. was an electricity and natural gas distribution network headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri in the United States. The company also owned and operated power generation assets. It previously operated under the name UtiliCorp Unit ...

's Canadian assets, formerly owned by

TransAlta TransAlta Corporation (formerly Calgary Power Company, Ltd.) is an electricity power generator and wholesale marketing company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is a privately owned corporation and its shares are traded publicly. It o ...

, Canada's largest publicly traded utility. As a result of this acquisition, Fortis became one of

Alberta's Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Terri ...

major regulated electrical distribution companies, serving 415,000 Albertans in 2005.

ATCO Electric ATCO Electric is an electric utility company. Based in Edmonton, Alberta, ATCO Electric transmits and distributes electricity to two thirds of Alberta, namely in north and east-central Alberta, as well as communities in Yukon and the Northwest Terr ...

is Alberta's other regulated distribution company. Also as a result of the 2003 acquisition, Fortis owns regulated generation, transmission, and distribution assets in British Columbia. In 2007, Fortis acquired Terasen Gas from

Kinder Morgan Kinder Morgan, Inc. is one of the largest energy infrastructure companies in North America. The company specializes in owning and controlling oil and gas pipelines and terminals. Kinder Morgan owns an interest in or operates approximately ...

, which had sold the BC gas utility as a non-strategic asset included in its 2005 acquisition of

Terasen Inc FortisBC is a Canadian owned, British Columbia based regulated utility focused on providing safe and reliable energy, including natural gas, Renewable Natural Gas, electricity and propane. FortisBC has approximately 2,600 employees serving more th ...

. In addition to its regulated Canadian assets, Fortis also owns unregulated assets in Ontario, British Columbia, and Newfoundland. The majority of its unregulated business consists of hydroelectric generating plants. Fortis' interests in the Caribbean include a 67% interest in Belize Electricity Limited (BEL) and a 95% interest in Belize Electric Co. Ltd. The Belize Association of Non-Government Organisations took Fortis to the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 Augus ...

in 2003 to have a new environmental assessment of the Chalillo Dam on the

Macal River The Macal River is a river running through Cayo District in western Belize. Sites along the river include the ancient Mayan town of Cahal Pech and the Belize Botanic Gardens. The Macal River discharges to the Belize River. There are several trib ...

which was a

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined a ...

development project. Ecologists were concerned over the future of species such as the

scarlet macaw The scarlet macaw (''Ara macao'') is a large red, yellow, and blue Central and South American parrot, a member of a large group of Neotropical parrots called macaws. It is native to humid evergreen forests of the Neotropics. Its range extends from ...

, the

tapir Tapirs ( ) are large, herbivorous mammals belonging to the family Tapiridae. They are similar in shape to a pig, with a short, prehensile nose trunk. Tapirs inhabit jungle and forest regions of South and Central America, with one species inh ...

and the

black howler monkey The black howler (''Alouatta caraya'') or black-and-gold howler, is among the largest New World monkeys and a member of the ''Alouatta'' genus. The black howler is distributed in areas of South America such as Paraguay, southern Brazil, eastern ...

as the project would flood 10 km² of rainforest in Belize. Celebrities such as

Harrison Ford Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. His films have grossed more than $5.4billion in North America and more than $9.3billion worldwide, making him the seventh-highest-grossing actor in North America. He is the recipient o ...

and

Cameron Diaz Cameron Michelle Diaz (born August 30, 1972) is an American actress. With a variety of works in film, she is widely recognised for her work in romantic comedies and animation. Diaz has received various accolades, including nominations for ...

supported a movement to stop this dam. Fortis and the Government of Belize supported the project. On May 30, 2011, it was announced that Fortis has plans to acquire Central Vermont Public Service, an electric utility in the US state of

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...

, for US$700 million, pending stockholder and regulatory approval; this acquisition would be Fortis' first utility acquisition in the United States. Gaz Métro offered a higher price and acquired CVPS. On February 21, 2012, CH Energy Group (a holding company for Central Hudson Gas & Electric, an upstate New York utility), announced a pending acquisition by Fortis valued at $1.5 billion. On June 27, 2013, Fortis Inc. closed on its acquisition of CHG. In 2013, Fortis announced its acquisition of UNS Energy, an Arizona utility company. On February 9, 2016, Fortis announced an agreement to acquire ITC Holdings Corp., the largest independent transmission utility in the United States, for US$11.3 billion in cash and stock.

Owns and Operates

Fortis currently owns the following regulated utilities: *

FortisBC FortisBC is a Canadian owned, British Columbia based regulated utility focused on providing safe and reliable energy, including natural gas, Renewable Natural Gas, electricity and propane. FortisBC has approximately 2,600 employees serving more th ...

, a utility in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...

* FortisAlberta Inc., a holding company for assets purchased from

* Central Hudson Gas & Electric, a utility in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

* Tucson Electric Power and

UniSource Energy Services UniSource Energy Services is an electric and natural gas utility company serving Arizona in the United States. It is a subsidiary of Fortis. W. B. Foshay Co., a predecessor of Citizens Communications, acquired Southern Arizona Power of Nogales a ...

, utilities in Arizona *

Newfoundland Power Newfoundland Power Inc. is an electric utility owned by Fortis Inc. which is the primary retailer of electric power in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The company was formed by the Royal Securities Corporation of Montreal in 1 ...

, serving 85% of the population of

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

; Fortis' original operating electric power subsidiary * Maritime Electric, serving 90% of the population of

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

* FortisOntario, a holding company for Canadian Niagara Power Company,

Cornwall Electric Cornwall Street Railway Light and Power Company Limited, operating as Cornwall Electric, is an electricity transmission and distribution utility, licensed by the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) to operate in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada. Originally ...

, and Algoma Power * Caribbean Utilities, a utility in the Cayman Islands * FortisTCI, a utility in the

Turks and Caicos Islands The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI; and ) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and ...

* Belize Electricity Limited, a utility in

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wa ...

ITC Transmission ITC Transmission was founded in 1999 as International Transmission Co., a subsidiary of Detroit Edison (since renamed DTE Energy Electric Company, itself a subsidiary of DTE Energy), charged in the ownership, operation and maintenance of Detroi ...

Novi, Michigan Novi ( ) is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 66,243, an increase of 20% from the 2010 census. A northern suburb of Metro Detroit, Novi is located about northwest of the city of ...

Fortis also operates three non-regulated companies: *

Fortis Generation Fortis may refer to: Business * Fortis AG, a Swiss watch company * Fortis Films, an American film and television production company founded by actress and producer Sandra Bullock * Fortis Healthcare, a chain of hospitals in India * Fortis I ...

, hydro generation in New York state and central Newfoundland. * Griffith Energy Services, a petroleum supplier in the eastern United States.

References

{{Portal, Companies S&P/TSX 60 Companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange Electric power companies of Canada Companies based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Energy companies established in 1987 Canadian companies established in 1987

Expansion

Owns and Operates

See also

References

External links