Past progress, future powered: Hydro Ottawa highlights record 2025 investments and launches 2026-2030 Strategic Direction

OTTAWA, ON, June 24, 2026 /CNW/ - At Hydro Ottawa Group, we believe that delivering power is only half the story; the true impact is found in the moments that energy empowers across the city. Today, as the company presented its 2025 Annual Report to City Council, it underscored that its record-breaking year of infrastructure investment is designed to do more than just upgrade the grid -- it is about fortifying the connectivity that keeps Ottawa's everyday life in motion.

Hydro Ottawa Group's 2025 Annual Report cover page. (CNW Group/Hydro Ottawa Group)

The 2025 financial results showcase the company's largest-ever grid investment program -- a critical foundation for the city's electrification and long-term economic resilience. This milestone testifies to past progress, marking the culmination of five years of profound organizational transformation. Having emerged stronger, more digitally agile, and resilient, Hydro Ottawa used today's Annual General Meeting to close this pivotal chapter and launch its 2026-2030 Strategic Direction.

This new strategic roadmap sets the stage for a future-powered Ottawa, tailored to meet the surging demands of a growing, modern capital while championing a sustainable, net-zero transition.

During the presentation, Board Chair, Bernie Ashe, and President and Chief Executive Officer, Bryce Conrad, outlined an ambitious path forward. By nearly doubling grid investment to support rapid growth and evolving customer expectations, Hydro Ottawa is re-engineering its operations and pivoting toward a dynamic, next-generation energy system. Through this renewed focus on capacity expansion and service excellence, the company ensures that as the community evolves, it remains reliably connected and prepared for the future.

Quick Facts

• In accordance with the City Council-approved dividend policy, Hydro Ottawa's dividend payment to the City will be $22.1 million this year, which will be used by the City to fund municipal programs and services.
• In 2025, Hydro Ottawa executed its largest-ever distribution capital program, investing close to $190 million in replacing aging infrastructure, boosting reliability, connecting new customers and supporting municipal projects. This helped maintain the company's best-in-class reliability, with customers having power 99.97 per cent of the time on average. Along the way a new safety record was set, with 1.5 million hours worked without a lost time injury.
• The company submitted a comprehensive grid investment plan for the 2026-2030 period to its regulator, the Ontario Energy Board (OEB). With OEB approval secured in May 2026, implementation of the capital projects and operational programs included within the new rate plan are underway.
• Significant milestones were achieved in support of the City of Ottawa's Zero Emission Bus project, including the installation of additional charging stations and equipment, completing upgrades of on-site power systems, and advancing the development of a new substation which will provide dedicated capacity for bus charging.
• Portage Power, the company's renewable energy subsidiary, pivoted to an active development posture with the establishment of an 800 MW pipeline of solar and battery storage projects. This business milestone will present opportunities for future growth while helping to meet Ontario's rising demand for sustainable energy.
• Envari, the company's energy solutions provider, supported partners like Ottawa Community Housing, the Ottawa International Airport Authority and Renfrew County school boards in reducing their energy consumption and carbon emissions through sustainable energy and decarbonization initiatives.
• The company's telecommunications subsidiary, hiboo networks, spent its second full year of operations securing contracts with major institutional and commercial customers, connecting to key urban internet exchanges and expanding its fibre optic network.
• As part of fulfilling its commitment to achieving net-zero operations, the company expanded its corporate electric vehicle (EV) fleet, completed the construction of the Piperville Municipal Transformer Station (its first substation designed and built using low-carbon techniques) and refreshed its Green Bond framework, securing financing for distribution infrastructure investments and other initiatives with environmental benefits.
• Hydro Ottawa achieved a 94 per cent overall customer satisfaction score and maintained one of the highest e-billing participation rates among Ontario distribution utilities (83 per cent).
• The company raised $152,000 for United Way East Ontario and $163,000 for The Royal Ottawa Prompt Care Clinic through its employee-driven charitable campaign. It also contributed $129,000 through its Community Investment Program to sponsor local organizations seeking to build stronger communities and support vulnerable groups.
• Hydro Ottawa's 2026-2030 Strategic Direction outlines a plan of action for confronting a rapidly changing business environment, responding to projected increases in long-term electricity demand and meeting evolving customer expectations. The strategy is anchored around five objectives which will guide how the company responds to key business drivers, delivers value to customers and pursues opportunities for growth.

Quotes

"Looking back, 2025 proved that Hydro Ottawa has the vision and the operational discipline to handle rapid change. We've closed one of the most transformative chapters in our history and are entering the next phase with confidence and resolve. We are fully prepared to meet the rising energy demands of our growing city, ensuring our customers continue to receive reliable, sustainable service."

- Bernie Ashe, Chair, Board of Directors

"The historic infrastructure investments we made in 2025 are the foundation for the city's next decade of growth. We are now shifting our focus to the future: transforming our grid into a modern, smarter system that meets the electrification needs of our city. Our commitment to our customers is unchanged -- we will continue to deliver the safe, reliable, and sustainable power that drives Ottawa forward."

- Bryce Conrad, President and Chief Executive Officer

About Hydro Ottawa Group

Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc. ['Hydro Ottawa Group'] is a private company 100 per cent owned by the City of Ottawa and whose strategic business lines include electricity distribution, renewable energy generation, transformative energy solutions, telecommunications and utility services. As a future-powered energy provider and partner in key green energy projects, the Hydro Ottawa Group is committed to innovation, community, and sustainability. It owns and operates four primary subsidiary companies that drive its vision for a dynamic energy future: Hydro Ottawa Limited – a local distribution company that delivers electricity to more than 377,000 customers in Ottawa and Casselman; Portage Power – the largest municipally-owned producer of renewable energy in the province of Ontario with 131 megawatts of installed green generation capacity (enough to power 110,000 homes); Envari – an innovative energy solutions company offering products and services designed to improve energy efficiency and drive cost savings for municipalities, industrial and business clients, governments and utilities; and hiboo networks - a high-speed fibre optic network solutions and internet services company focused on powering a strong digital future by providing secure and scalable connectivity for customers in the Ottawa-Gatineau region.

Learn more: hydroottawagroup.com

SOURCE Hydro Ottawa Group

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