The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) has granted Consumers Energy a final extension to negotiate a deal to sell 13 aging hydroelectric dams in West Michigan.

This is the second extension given to Consumers Energy. The company has until Wednesday, Dec. 9 to reach a settlement.

“If no settlement is filed by the Dec. 9 deadline, the Commission will issue a final order on the sale on Dec. 17,” said the Commission in a release. “The only way another extension would be granted is if a majority of parties to the case submit a joint request for another extension.”

Consumers’ deal would sell each of the dams for $1 each to Confluence Hydro LLC out of Maryland in a 30-year power purchase agreement. Confluence would directly run the operations of the dams with Consumers paying an elevated $160-per megawatt-hour power rate. In return, Consumers would receive 8.75% return on power costs, potentially reaching up to $270 million by the end of the agreement. The total estimated ratepayer cost would be approximately $3.4 billion.

"We understand the desire for communities and our coworkers to resolve this sale,” said Chris Fultz, Consumers Energy’s senior vice president of electric supply. “The MPSC ruling keeps us on that path toward an agreement that will be a win for our customers, Michigan and the communities we care about."

Dams included in the sale include the following:

• Alcona Dam - Au Sable River & Alcona Dam Pond near Glennie

• Calkins Bridge Dam - Kalamazoo River & Lake Allegan near Allegan

• Cooke Dam - Au Sable River & Foote Dam Pond near Oscoda

• Croton Dam - Muskegon River & Croton Dam Pond near Croton

• Five Channels Dam - Five Channels Dam Pond & Cooke Dam Pond (Au Sable River) near South Branch

• Foote Dam - Au Sable River & Foote Dam Pond near Oscoda

• Hardy Dam - Croton Dam Pond & Hardy Dam Pond (Au Sable River) near Croton

• Hodenpyl Dam - Manistee River & Hodenpyl Dam near Mesick

• Loud Dam - Loud Dam Pond & Five Channels Dam Pond (Au Sable River) near South Branch

• Mio Dam - Au Sable River & Mio Dam Pond near Mio

• Rogers Dam - Muskegon River & Rogers Dam Pond near Rogers Heights

• Tippy Dam - Manistee River & Tippy Dam Pond near Wellston

• Webber Dam - Grand River near Lyons

Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, ratepayer advocates, and several angler and conservation groups have urged the MPSC to reject the sale.