Third straight dry year means projected loss at Crown-owned Manitoba Hydro

Manitoba Hydro power lines are photographed just outside Winnipeg, Monday, May 1, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods

WINNIPEG — Faced with a third straight drought, Manitoba Hydro says it could be looking at its biggest financial loss in years once the fiscal year ends in March.

The provincial Crown corporation is reporting a net loss of $293 million for the first six months of the 2025‑26 fiscal year, compared with a net loss of $123 million in the same period last year.

The corporation’s second-quarter update says ongoing dry conditions have meant lower water levels, and wildfires aided by the dry conditions have required infrastructure repairs and replacement.

Export revenues were also down due partly to the expiry of a long-term contract with a Minnesota-based utility.

Manitoba Hydro says its losses this year could exceed those recorded four years ago, and documents filed with the Public Utilities Board — the provincial regulator — estimate a loss of roughly $409 million.

Hydro is asking the board for rate increases of 3.5 per cent in each of the next three years, and hearings on the request are now underway.

“The financial results for the second quarter of 2025-26 continued to reflect the impact of drought conditions this year due to record low precipitation during the summer months, coupled with low opening reservoir storage levels at the start of this fiscal year due to low water conditions experienced last fiscal year,” the quarterly report, released Thursday, reads.

“This will be the third year in a row, and the fourth time in the last five years, that Manitoba Hydro is experiencing low water conditions.”

The losses at Manitoba Hydro are one factor being cited by the Manitoba government for a growing provincial deficit.

The NDP government said Monday it is now forecasting a deficit of $1.6 billion, more than double the $794 million estimated in the spring budget.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 18, 2025

Steve Lambert, The Canadian Press