The New Mexico state Public Regulation Commission on Wednesday denied the controversial merger proposal that included Public Service Company of New Mexico, Avangrid of Connecticut and Iberdrola of Spain.
The commission took the additional step of fining Avangrid $10,000 for failing, during deliberations in the spring, to promptly disclose service penalties its subsidiaries have faced.
After a half-day of discussion, the commission said it believed New Mexico and PNM could do better than this proposal. All five commissioners voted against the merger, which was offered about a year ago.
Commissioners said they were troubled by Avangrid subsidiaries’ service record in the Northeast, an investigation in Spain of current and former Iberdrola executives, and by the applicants’ disregard for commission regulations.
“I am saddened by this commission’s decision to reject our deal with Avangrid,” Pat Vincent-Collawn, PNM’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, said in a statement a few minutes after the decision. “We will continue to evaluate any next steps that could allow us to bring the positive benefits to the people we serve.”
Avangrid, a U.S. subsidiary of the Spain-based Iberdrola, is the parent company of Central Maine Power.
Rick Ruggles, The Santa Fe New Mexican. BDN writer Leela Stockley contributed to this report.