The City of Red Deer has provided Council with an update on the Electric Utility Municipally Controlled Corporation (MCC) project.
The implementation of Council’s June 2025 decision to establish and control a new Electric Utility Corporation is being carried out in three stages. Stage 1, which focused on detailed planning and establishing the project team, was completed at the end of 2025.
Stage 2 focuses on developing the governance framework for the corporation, preparing regulatory applications and completing the transition planning required before operations could transfer to the MCC.
“Since Council directed Administration to move forward with an MCC in June 2025, we have been carefully planning for the implementation phase,” said Sarah Tittemore, General Manager of Operations. “We are pleased to provide this update to community on where we are at, and to reinforce that our focus continues to be on strong governance and maintaining reliable service for our customers throughout the process.”
At today’s meeting, Council directed administration to return by the end of April 2026 with a side-by-side comparison analysis of governance options to help inform Council on the options and considerations.
There are no immediate changes for customers as a result of entering Stage 2. Electric utility services will continue to operate as they do today while governance, regulatory and transition work continues. The Electric Utility will remain a City department until regulatory approvals are secured and the formal transfer of operations occurs. The MCC is expected to begin operating in early 2028, but this timeline is subject to the Alberta Utilities Commission process and other required regulatory approvals.
The City of Red Deer has delivered electric utility services since 1926. Today, the Electric Utility serves more than 45,000 metered sites, manages 15 substations and generates significant annual revenue that supports City services. Following public engagement and the public hearing in 2025, Council directed administration to establish a Municipally Controlled Corporation under provincial legislation as the next step in modernizing the utility’s governance model. Residents can learn more about the Utilities Governance Model Review and ongoing project updates at reddeer.ca/utilitiesmodel.