Hydro One to carry out site due diligence as negotiations continue

Hydro One received the green light from Orillia Council to access the Horne Business Park in West Orillia to begin their due diligence on the site as the two parties continue to negotiate a potential deal that could result in an Advanced Technology Hub being built on the City’s employment lands.

“As we continue to negotiate with Hydro One on the best possible deal for the City of Orillia, we recognize their need to carry out their own due diligence on the proposed site. Council’s decision simply allows them access to the property to start that process,” said Mayor Steve Clarke.  

The City of Orillia is currently negotiating a potential deal with Hydro One that could result in $200-300 million in near-term economic impact, derived from construction of an advanced technology hub.  The potential project would create a significant number of highly-skilled jobs, and result in an upgrade to telecommunications within the City of Orillia. As part of the discussions, Hydro One is negotiating the purchase of Orillia Power Distribution Corporation (OPDC), a subsidiary of the Orillia Power Corporation (OPC). The Orillia Power Generation Corporation (OPGC), whose business includes three hydroelectric generating stations, will not be affected and will continue to be owned by the City.

The motion passed at the Nov. 3 Special Council Meeting essentially grants Hydro One permission to go onto the Horne Business Park property to conduct the necessary due diligence required to inform the negotiation process. This due diligence would include, for example, environmental and geotechnical testing, and is estimated to take a few months to complete.

The new Hydro One facilities would be an industry-leading hub in North America. It would house technology for network monitoring and for coordinating emergency response with multiple organizations across the continent. In addition, Hydro One may consolidate some operations and logistics, as well as telecom management facilities within this innovative hub.

It is anticipated that a deal could be presented to Council for consideration early in the New Year.

For more information visit http://orillia.ca/techhub.

The City of Orillia is a city of 31,000 people in the heart of Ontario’s Lake Country on the shores of Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. Visit our website at orillia.ca.

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Mayor Steve Clarke
City of Orillia
705-325-2447
mayor@orillia.ca

Jennifer Ruff
Manager of Communications
705-325-8929
705- 238-9209 (cell)
jruff@orillia.ca