LANSING, MI (WHTC-AM/FM, Jun. 15, 2026) – The future of the Calkins Dam in Allegan has again been cast in doubt.
Last week, state Administrative Law Judge James Varchetti recommended that the Michigan Public Service Commission reject a proposed sale of 13 hydropower dams to Washington-based Hull Street Energy’s Confluence Hydro for a dollar each. The deal would commit Consumers Energy to buy back power at a starting rate of $160 per megawatt hour, about double the current rate, with a 2.5-percent annual price increase over the length of the 30-year-long agreement.
Groups opposed to the sale say that accountability would be compromised, but Allegan County Board Chairman Scott Beltman and his colleagues last month unanimously approved a resolution supporting the sale.
The judge’s ruling will be considered by the PSC when they vote on whether to approve the sale of the dams later this year.
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