Following a nearly five-hour special meeting Monday night, Guelph council voted 8-5 against the merger, which would have created a utility with about 325,000 residential and commercial customers.

On Tuesday morning, Horizon Utilities sent out a news release stating the hydro boards of St. Catharines, Hamilton and Guelph have terminated discussions on the merger.

Max Cananzi, president and CEO of Horizon Utilities, said the decision was unfortunate but not fatal for Horizon.

"We're disappointed, but we've got a great business," he said. "We're financially strong. We've got among the lowest rates of any utility in the province."

He said Horizon remains committed to seeking further consolidation options but wouldn't comment on any specific discussions. Mergers among the province's hydro utilities are inevitable, he said, and necessary for their survival as electricity rates set by the province go up.

"I think that is a matter of time," he said. "More consolidations will happen. There's no doubt about it."

He said Guelph has lost a good opportunity in turning down the partnership with Horizon.

"I truly believe that the business plan that we put forward to the community of Guelph was a very, very solid plan for that community," he said. "This was going to be a win-win-win for all three communities. And I don't know if Guelph is going to come across a better deal. I truly believe that."

Coun. Joe Kushner, who sits on the St. Catharines Hydro board, agreed.

"I think Guelph was very unwise because I don't think they'll get an offer like they did from Horizon," he said.

Cananzi said he attended the public meeting, and the majority of those who addressed council spoke against it. The single main issue was the concern over Guelph losing control over the more than 100-year-old utility.

He added the Guelph Chamber of Commerce strongly recommended moving forward.

In letters to local daily newspaper Guelph Mercury, readers voiced their concern about the local utility being swallowed up by a large corporation.

Another stated the current financial turmoil makes giving up local control to become part of a larger, more complex company exposed the city and its energy requirement to too much risk.