The Quebec leader in the rental of water heaters, HydroSolution, is going to Ontario interests in a transaction whose amount has not been disclosed.
“They made us an unsolicited offer and we rushed to accept it. It’s like a big brother who knows the field,” says Nicolas Ayotte, President and CEO of HydroSolution, about the acquirer, the Ontario company Enercare.
HydroSolution is experiencing rapid growth and has doubled its number of employees over the past eight years. The company belonged to Hydro-Québec until 2005.
Two of the main shareholders of the company were iA Financial Group and the Caisse de depot et placement du Québec.
“Everyone was in agreement”
“It was a harmonious process with the shareholders. Everyone was in agreement”, underlines Mr. Ayotte.
The businessman recently under the leadership of Ontario interests insists a lot in an interview on the “Quebec clause” included in the sale.
No relocation
The head office will remain here, he assures. And HydroSolution’s business partners will remain Quebecois, if we are to believe it.
“We are a service company. Water heater installers, we can’t relocate that to Ontario,” he says.
Courtesy picture
In addition to renting water heaters, Hydro Solution also offers electric charging stations, a rapidly growing sector with a future.
Quebecers not solicited
HydroSolution’s water heaters run on electricity, he adds, while those in Ontario mostly run on natural gas, further ensuring that operations will remain Quebec-centric.
“It will allow us to ensure our growth in peace, because Enercare believes in us and has given us all the assurances about the future”, insists Mr. Ayotte.
But why not try to find out if the Caisse, already a shareholder, or a fund like that of the FTQ, could have been interested and thus preserve the Quebec character of the flourishing company?
“We didn’t even ask the question. When a leader like Enercare approaches you, the choice is obvious,” says the boss.
Backed by its agreement with Hilo, a subsidiary of Hydro-Québec, which promises Quebecers smarter management of their energy consumption, HydroSolution says it sees the future in a good light.
“We have tripled our number of partners in Quebec in recent years, and the goal is to triple that number again,” enthuses the CEO.
▶ The sale of HydroSolution occurs less than 12 months after that of the manufacturer of water heaters Giant, which has been located since 1945 in the east of Montreal, to American interests.