Georgia Public Service Commission OK's Dominion Energy, SCANA Merger

The Georgia Public Service Commission has unanimously approved the merger of Dominion Energy, Inc. and SCANA Corporation, becoming the first state regulatory agency to act on the proposed merger.

“We greatly appreciate the prompt action by Chairman McDonald and the other commissioners in moving forward with our proposal,” said Thomas F. Farrell, II, Dominion Energy chairman, president and chief executive officer. “This is an important step in bringing a brighter energy future to customers, communities and others served by the SCANA companies. We look forward to receiving the additional required regulatory approvals and completing our transaction by the end of this year.”

The Federal Trade Commission previously granted early termination of the 30-day waiting period under the federal Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act. The merger is also contingent upon approval of SCANA’s shareholders; review and approval from the public service commissions of South Carolina and North Carolina; and authorization of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Under an agreement announced in January, the combined company would deliver energy to approximately 6.5 million regulated customer accounts and have an electric-generating portfolio of about 31,400 megawatts and 93,600 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines. It also would have a natural gas pipeline network totaling 106,400 miles and operate one of the nation’s largest natural gas storage systems with 1 trillion cubic feet of capacity.