MPSC sets December deadline for decision on Consumers Energy dam sales

Consumers Energy, one of the state’s largest energy utilities, has once again asked Michigan energy regulators to delay their decision on whether to approve a sale of 13 hydroelectric dams located throughout the state.

While the Michigan Public Service Commission’s three members unanimously approved Consumers’ request to delay decision-making during their Thursday meeting, Chair Dan Scripps stressed that this would be the final extension, unless a majority of the parties in the case agree to another.

“Any settlement agreement must be filed by 5 p.m. on Dec. 9, 2026, and any further extension of the waiver of the statutory deadline would require a stipulation from a majority of the parties to the proceeding that must be filed on that same date,” Scripps said.

If the parties do not reach a settlement, the commission will issue a final order at its Dec. 17 meeting, Scripps said.

Consumers Energy filed its first request to delay the commission’s decision on Sept. 8, stating it felt they could come to a constructive solution regarding some of the concerns raised by the parties opposing the sale.

However, the company’s call for a compromise was met with skepticism by multiple environmental and conservation organizations opposing the sale. Daniel Abrams, a senior associate attorney at the Environmental Law and Policy Center, wrote in opposition to the request, stating “This is not a case in which the parties are fully and deeply engaged in ongoing negotiations that are close to resolution.”

That skepticism had not faded when the company filed its latest request on Tuesday.

While Consumers Energy Attorney Bret Totoraitis said the company believes “there continues to be opportunity for a constructive settlement solution in this case that addresses the concerns raised during the course of the proceeding and wishes to continue to engage in negotiations to achieve such a solution,” Abrams disputed that assessment. 

Michigan AG urges state regulators to reject Consumers Energy dam sale

“Simply put, this case is not going to settle,” Abrams wrote in his response on behalf of Michigan Trout Unlimited, the Michigan Steelhead and Salmon Fishermen’s Association, Great Lakes Council of Fly Fishers International, Anglers of the Au Sable and the Michigan Hydro Relicensing Coalition.

Consumers Energy announced it had found a buyer for the collection of dams in 2025.

Under the conditions of the sale, Confluence Hydro – a subsidiary of Hull Street Energy, a Maryland-based private equity company – will purchase the dams for $1 each and enter a contract with Consumers Energy to provide them with power from the dams for 30 years.

However, several parties, including Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dan Nessel, have raised safety concerns around selling the dams, which were built between 1906 and 1935, to an out-of-state private equity company.

“These dams are powerful, and they can be dangerous when they’re not maintained,” Nessel told Michigan Advance in an Oct. 21 interview. “So any sale that takes 13 dams in Michigan out of the hands of a well-funded and highly regulated public utility, and then gives it to the interests of out-of-state private equity, we think, should be looked at very carefully and candidly, very skeptically.”

In a letter to the public service commission, Whitmer argued that the deal around the sale “lacks firm, enforceable protections to ensure the dams will be properly maintained and safely retired when they are no longer economical to operate.” 

“It does not require Hull Street Energy, the parent company, to cover all future repair, accident, environmental, and decommissioning costs, nor does it require adequately funded reserves to cover those expenses,” Whitmer wrote.

If it is unable to move forward with the sale, Consumers Energy has said the dams will be decommissioned, sparking concerns among the communities who use the waterways created by these dams.

However, Nessel told Michigan Advance that Consumers cannot make that decision on its own. 

“It would require entirely separate and lengthy cases before the MPSC, and the local communities get to have a say in that,” Nessel said. “But that wouldn’t be the case if they’re sold off to private equity.”

In an email following Thursday’s commission meeting, Consumers Energy Media Relations Manager Brian Wheeler told the Advance the company appreciates the commissioners’ decision to establish a timetable to reach a settlement.

“We understand the desire for communities and our coworkers to resolve this sale,” Chris Fultz, Consumers Energy’s senior vice president of electric supply said in a statement. “Today’s MPSC ruling keeps us on that path toward an agreement that will be a win for our customers, Michigan and the communities we care about.”