TORONTO and SPOKANE, Wash., May 07, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hydro One Limited (“Hydro One”) (TSX:H) and Avista Corporation
(“Avista”) (NYSE:AVA) announced that on May 4, 2018, the companies received the Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC”) consent
to close their merger.
Applications for regulatory approval of the transaction are still pending with utility commissions in Idaho,
Alaska, Washington, Oregon and Montana. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Idaho Public Utilities
Commission on April 13, 2018. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska on
April 3, 2018. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Washington Utilities and Transportation
Commission on March 27, 2018.
Hydro One and Avista received antitrust clearance on April 5, 2018 after the expiration of the waiting period
under the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended. The transaction received approval from the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission on January 16, 2018 and from Avista shareholders on November 21, 2017. Also required is clearance by
the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States as well as the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. Hydro
One and Avista continue to anticipate closing the transaction in the second half of 2018.
For further information:
Hydro One
Media:
Jay Armitage
Director, Corporate Communications
media.relations@hydroone.com, 416-345-6868
Investors:
Omar Javed
Vice President, Investor Relations
investor.relations@hydroone.com,
416-345-5943
Avista
Media:
Casey Fielder, Communications Manager
casey.fielder@avistacorp.com, 509-495-4916
Investors:
Lauren Pendergraft, Investor Relations Manager
lauren.pendergraft@avistacorp.com,
509-495-2998
About Hydro One Limited
We are Ontario's largest electricity transmission and distribution provider with more than 1.3 million valued
customers, over C$25 billion in assets and 2017 annual revenues of nearly C$6 billion. Our team of over 7,400 skilled and dedicated
regular and non-regular employees proudly and safely serves suburban, rural and remote communities across Ontario through our
30,000 circuit km of high-voltage transmission and 123,000 circuit km of primary distribution networks. Hydro One is committed to
the communities we serve, and has been rated as the top utility in Canada for its corporate citizenship, sustainability, and
diversity initiatives. We are one of only five utility companies in Canada to achieve the Sustainable Electricity Company
designation from the Canadian Electricity Association. We also provide advanced broadband telecommunications services on a
wholesale basis utilizing our extensive fibre optic network through Hydro One Telecom Inc. Hydro One Limited's common shares are
listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:H).
Forward-Looking Statements and Information
This press release and the joint application and settlement agreement to which it refers may contain “forward-looking
information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Words such as “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “attempt,” “may,”
“plan,” “will”, “can”, “believe,” “seek,” “estimate,” and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify
such forward-looking information. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or actions and involve assumptions and
risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is
expressed, implied or forecasted in such forward-looking information. Some of the factors that could cause actual results or
outcomes to differ materially from the results expressed, implied or forecasted by such forward-looking information, including some
of the assumptions used in making such statements, are discussed more fully in Hydro One’s filings with the securities regulatory
authorities in Canada, which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Hydro One does not intend, and it disclaims any obligation, to update any forward-looking information,
except as required by law.
About Avista Corporation
Avista Corporation is an energy company involved in the production, transmission and distribution of energy as well as other
energy-related businesses. Avista Utilities is our operating division that provides electric service to 385,000 customers and natural gas
to 350,000 customers. Its service territory covers 30,000 square miles in eastern Washington, northern Idaho and parts of
southern and eastern Oregon, with a population of 1.6 million. Alaska Energy and Resources Company is an Avista subsidiary that
provides retail electric service in the city and borough of Juneau, Alaska, through its subsidiary Alaska Electric Light and Power Company. Avista stock is traded under the
ticker symbol "AVA." For more information about Avista, please visit www.myAvista.com.
This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding the company’s current expectations. Forward-looking statements
are all statements other than historical facts. Such statements speak only as of the date of the news release and are subject to a
variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company’s control, which could cause actual results to differ
materially from the expectations. These risks and uncertainties include, in addition to those discussed herein, all of the factors
discussed in the company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2017 and the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for
the quarter ended March 31, 2018.
