Canadian utility Enmax to buy Emera's Maine unit for $959 mln

Reuters

(Adds details on deal, background on Emera's funding strategy)

March 25 (Reuters) - Enmax Corp said on Monday it will buy Emera Inc's electric transmission and distribution unit for $959 million, as the Canadian company expands its North American regulated utility business.

The sale of the unit, Emera Maine, is expected to close in late 2019 and is part of Emera's previously announced three-year funding plan.

Emera intends to use the proceeds to support its C$6.5 billion capital investment opportunities and reduce corporate debt, the company said in a statement.

The company, which has already announced the sale of its New England Gas Generation portfolio, said the two divestitures will raise about C$2.1 billion.

Enmax will entirely fund the transaction through debt.

CIBC Capital Markets is the financial adviser to Enmax on the transaction.

(Reporting by Arundhati Sarkar in Bengaluru; Editing by James Emmanuel and Sriraj Kalluvila)