WASHINGTON — WGL Holdings shareholders overwhelmingly approved the Washington Gas parent company’s merger with Canadian utility AltaGas Ltd. at a special meeting at WGL’s corporate office in D.C. on Wednesday.
WGL says 96.22 percent of shares that were voted, voted in favor of the $6.4 billion deal.
The merger still needs regulatory approval, including approvals from the D.C. Public Service Commission, the Maryland Public Service Commission and the Virginia State Corporation Commission.
Both companies expect the merger to be completed in summer of 2018.
The merger, first announced in January, will create a utility with 1.65 million utility customers across the U.S. and Canada.
WGL Holdings will remain headquartered, as a stand-alone utility, in the District.
Alberta, Canada-based AltaGas will also move the headquarters of its U.S. power business, and about 20 jobs, to D.C.
Headquarters employees, around 200 of them, will work out of brand new offices. WGL Holdings will move its headquarters to The Wharf Development on DC’s Southwest Waterfront around the time the merger closes in mid-2018.
WGL Holdings has about 1,500 employees total in Washington currently.
AltaGas runs power plants across North America, and owns two other U.S. gas utilities — Michigan gas utility Semco Energy Gas Co. and Alaska gas utility Enstar Natural Gas Co.
