WHEREAS there appear to be some significant concerns and questions expressed by a number of communities in the province with regard to the proposed sale of Terasen Inc. to Kinder Morgan, Inc.; AND WHEREAS the magnitude and implications of the possible sale on the affected communities of BC have yet to be considered and addressed in any meaningful way: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Union of BC Municipalities petition the BC Utilities Commission to seek public hearings throughout the province to assess the benefits or detriments to the communities of BC of the proposed sale of Terasen Inc. to Kinder Morgan Inc.
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Terasen is a privately-owned holding company that was publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange. As of November 30, 2005 the outstanding common shares of Terasen are owned by Kinder Morgan. Terasen continues to have 15 subsidiary companies engaged in the distribution of natural gas and propane, the operation of pipelines and the provision of water and utility services. None of these companies own or have control of British Columbia natural resources. Environmental and safety regulations and standards apply to all companies, irrespective of share ownership. The British Columbia Utilities Commission BCUC held a public hearing on this matter to ensure the public interest would not be detrimentally affected by the transaction. Subsequently, the BCUC approved this transaction, including conditions designed to protect the financial integrity of the utilities it regulates, to maintain the independence of Directors and to protect the location of functions and data of the utilities. The existing regulated utilities owned by Terasen will continue to operate in the same manner and under the same regulations as they do today: - BCUC has, and will retain, regulatory authority over the provincially regulated Terasen utilities; - Terasens other regulated Canadian businesses such as pipelines also have, and will continue to have, regulatory oversight by the National Energy Board. In addition to the BCUC review, there are several other levels of federal and provincial approvals that were received.