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{{short description|Canadian pension fund}}
{{short description|Canadian pension fund}}
{{Redirect|Omers|the ancient Israelite unit of dry measure|Omer (unit)}}
{{Redirect|Omers|the ancient Israelite unit of dry measure|Omer (unit)|the singular|Omer (disambiguation)}}
{{more citations needed|date=November 2012}}
{{more citations needed|date=November 2012}}
{{Infobox company
{{Infobox company
| name = Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System
| name = Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System
| logo =
| logo =
| logo_size = 200px
| logo_size = 200px
| trade_name = OMERS
| trade_name = OMERS
| type = [[Statutory corporation]]<ref name="cavalluzzo"/>
| type = [[Statutory corporation]]<ref name="cavalluzzo"/>
| industry = [[Pension fund]]
| industry = [[Pension fund]]
| successor =
| successor =
| foundation = {{Start date and age|1962}}
| foundation = {{Start date and age|1962}}
| location = EY Tower, 900-100 Adelaide Street West [[Toronto]], Ontario M5H 0E2, Canada
| location = [[EY Tower]]<br>900-100 Adelaide Street West<br> [[Toronto]], Ontario<br>M5H 0E2
| area_served = Particpating employers and employees in Ontario, Canada
| area_served = Participating employers and employees in Ontario, Canada
| key_people = [[Blake Hutcheson]] (CEO)<br />[https://www.omers.com/george-cooke George Cooke] (Board chair, Administration Corporation)<br />[https://www.omers.com/michael-rolland Michael Rolland] (CEO, Sponsors Corporation)<br />[https://www.omers.com/sc-board-of-directors Frank Ramagnano] (Board chair, Sponsors Corporation)
| key_people = [[Blake Hutcheson]] (CEO)<br />[https://www.omers.com/george-cooke George Cooke] (Board chair, Administration Corporation)<br />[https://www.omers.com/michael-rolland Michael Rolland] (CEO, Sponsors Corporation)<br />[https://www.omers.com/sc-board-of-directors Frank Ramagnano] (Board chair, Sponsors Corporation)
| revenue =
| revenue =
| operating_income =
| operating_income =
| net_income = OMERS funded status on a smoothed basis was 97% in 2020, unchanged from the prior year.
| net_income = OMERS funded status on a smoothed basis was 97% in 2023
| assets = [[Canadian dollar|C$]]128.6 billion (2023)<ref name="omers-home"/>

| owner = The participating employers and employees of the OMERS pension plans
| assets = [[Canadian dollar|C$]]105 billion (2020)<ref name="omers-home"/>
| num_employees = estimated 1000
| equity =
| parent = OMERS Administration Corporation Board of Directors
| owner = The participating employers and employees of the OMERS pension plans
| divisions = OMERS Infrastructure<br />OMERS Capital Markets<br />OMERS Private Equity<br />[[Oxford Properties]]
| num_employees = estimated 1000
| homepage = {{URL|https://omers.com}}
| parent = OMERS Administration Corporation Board of Directors
| footnotes =
| divisions = OMERS Infrastructure<br />OMERS Capital Markets<br />OMERS Private Equity<br />[[Oxford Properties]]
| intl =
| homepage = {{URL|https://omers.com}}
| footnotes =
| intl =
}}
}}
The '''Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System'''<ref>{{cite web|url = https://www.omers.com/about-omers
OMERS is a Canadian public pension fund, headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. OMERS is a defined benefit, jointly sponsored, multi-employer public pension plan created in 1962 by [[Ontario]] provincial [[statute]] to administer retirement benefits and manage pension investment funds of local government employees in the [[Provinces and territories of Canada|Canadian province]] of Ontario. "OMERS" stands for the '''Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System'''.<ref>{{webref|url = https://www.omers.com/about-omers
|title = About OMERS
|title = About OMERS
|publisher = OMERS
|publisher = OMERS
|access-date = 2020-09-17
|access-date = 2020-09-17
}}</ref> ('''OMERS''') is a Canadian public [[pension fund]], headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. OMERS is a defined benefit, jointly sponsored, multi-employer public pension plan created in 1962 by [[Ontario]] provincial [[statute]] to administer retirement benefits and manage pension investment funds of local government employees in the [[Provinces and territories of Canada|Canadian province]] of Ontario. {{As of|2022|12|31|df=US}}, OMERS had [[Canadian dollar|C$]]124 billion of assets under management.<ref name="omers-home">{{cite web |date=2023-02-24 |title=OMERS reports 2022 results |url=https://downloads.ctfassets.net/iifcbkds7nke/5IN3tjT6LwBYsEL8tCqbAM/f6b7ed10a020e71f11f83269b0c4da66/OMERS_2022_Annual_Report.pdf |access-date=2021-02-24 |publisher=OMERS}}</ref> OMERS serves over 1,000 participating employers and more than half a million active, deferred and retired employees. OMERS members are employed by municipalities, school boards, transit systems, local electrical distribution companies, police service boards, fire fighting and paramedic services, children's aid societies and associated local agencies, boards and commissions.<ref name="about">{{cite web
}}</ref> {{As of|2020|12|31|df=US}}, OMERS had [[Canadian dollar|C$]]105 billion of assets under management.<ref name="omers-home">{{cite web
| url = https://www.omers.com/news/omers-reports-2020-financial-results-paying-pensions-over-decades-means-a-long-term-approach
| title = OMERS reports 2020 results
| publisher = OMERS
| date = 2021-02-24
| access-date = 2021-02-24
}}</ref> OMERS serves over 1,000 participating employers and more than half a million active, deferred and retired employees. OMERS members are employed by municipalities, school boards, transit systems, local electrical distribution companies, police service boards, fire fighting and paramedic services, children's aid societies and associated local agencies, boards and commissions.<ref name="about">{{cite web
|url = https://www.omers.com/about-omers
|url = https://www.omers.com/about-omers
|title = About OMERS
|title = About OMERS
Line 44: Line 36:
|access-date = 2020-09-17
|access-date = 2020-09-17
}}</ref>
}}</ref>
==OMERS Governance==


In 2010, this fund assumed the pensions of firefighters, police officers, emergency physicians, employees of the Children's Aid Society, school employees other than teachers, public transport employees and Ontario Hydro employees.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Page Not Found |url=https://www.omers.com/page-not-found |access-date=2022-08-05 |website=www.omers.com |language=en-CA}}</ref>
==Structure==
OMERS is governed by the ''Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement Act, 2006'', an Ontario law which superseded the older ''Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System Act''.


== Organization ==
Under the 2006 law, OMERS is composed of two [[statutory corporation]]s:<ref name="cavalluzzo">{{cite web |url=https://www.cavalluzzo.com/docs/default-source/cases/2008-canlii-3970-omers-sponsors-corporation-v-omers-administration-corporation---amanda-darrach.pdf?sfvrsn=27c555d5_2 |title=Omers Administration Corporation |work=cavalluzzo.com |access-date=2020-11-13}}</ref>
OMERS is governed by the ''Ontario Municipal Employee's Retirement Act, 2006'', an Ontario law which superseded the older ''Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System Act''.
* The Administration Corporation provides strategic, risk and operational management in serving Plan members and employers, collecting contributions and paying pensions, and investing the Plan funds.<ref name="sponsors">{{cite web
| url = http://www.omers.com/Plan_Governance/Sponsors_Corporation.htm
| title = Sponsors Corporation
| publisher = OMERS
| date = 2008-05-22
| access-date = 2008-07-17
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080705101557/http://www.omers.com/Plan_Governance/Sponsors_Corporation.htm
| archive-date = 2008-07-05
| url-status = dead
}}</ref>
* The Sponsors Corporation provides strategic and risk oversight, and decision-making with regard to designing pension benefits, setting contribution levels, and determining the composition of the two OMERS Boards.<ref name="sponsors"/>


Under the 2006 law, OMERS is composed of two [[statutory corporation]]s.<ref name="cavalluzzo">{{cite web |url=https://www.cavalluzzo.com/docs/default-source/cases/2008-canlii-3970-omers-sponsors-corporation-v-omers-administration-corporation---amanda-darrach.pdf?sfvrsn=27c555d5_2 |title=Omers Administration Corporation |work=cavalluzzo.com |access-date=2020-11-13}}</ref> In 2019, OMERS ventures launched a $315M European Venture fund, a fully owned subsidiary of OMERS Ventures led by Managing Partner Harry Briggs.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://social.techcrunch.com/2019/03/25/omers-ventures-europe/|title=Omers Ventures outs €300M European fund — Q&A with Managing Partner Harry Briggs|website=TechCrunch|date=25 March 2019 |language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-06}}</ref>
==Investments==
OMERS has four major investment divisions:<ref name="omers-home"/>
* [https://www.omersinfrastructure.com/team OMERS Infrastructure], which invests in public [[infrastructure]]
* OMERS Capital Markets, which manages investment in the public markets, such as government bonds and stock in publicly traded companies
* OMERS Private Equity, which concentrates on [[private equity]] investment
* [[Oxford Properties]], which owns [[real estate]] such as office buildings and shopping centres


OMERS is a partner of the [[World Economic Forum]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=OMERS |url=https://www.weforum.org/organizations/omers/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221106031851/https://www.weforum.org/organizations/omers |archive-date=2022-11-06 |access-date=2022-11-06 |website=[[World Economic Forum]] |language=en}}</ref>
===OMERS Infrastructure===
{{dynamic list}}
'''Outline of OMERS Infrastructure assets''':<ref name="infrastructure-assets">{{cite web
| url = https://www.omersinfrastructure.com/Investments
| title = Our Portfolio
| publisher = OMERS Infrastructure
| access-date = March 17, 2019}}
</ref>
* Amedes Holding GmbH — a provider of medical-diagnostic services, including [[COVID-19]] tests. Co-investors include [[Goldman Sachs]] and [[AXA]].<ref>{{cite news|url = https://www.wsj.com/articles/goldman-sachs-ontario-pension-fund-close-to-deal-to-buy-covid-19-test-provider-11627642438?mod=markets_lead_pos12| title = Ontario Pension Fund, Goldman Sachs Agree to Buy Majority Stake in Covid-19 Test Provider| publisher = [[The Wall Street Journal]]| date = 2021-07-30| access-date = 2021-07-30}}</ref>
* [[Associated British Ports]] — handles nearly a quarter of the U.K.'s seaborne trade by weight
* [[Alectra]] — (2.96%) municipal electricity utility serving over one million customers in Alliston, Aurora, Barrie, Beeton, Brampton, Bradford, Guelph, Hamilton, Markham, Mississauga, Penetanguishene, Richmond Hill, Rockwood, St. Catharines, Thornton, Tottenham and Vaughan in [[Ontario]]
* BridgeTex — a crude oil pipeline between the Permian Basin in West Texas and the Gulf Coast, with a capacity of 440,000 barrels per day
* [[Bruce Power]] — a company running eight nuclear power reactors owned by [[Ontario Hydro]] with a capacity of 6,300 MW.
* CannAmm — a provider of drug and alcohol testing and occupational health services in Canada
* [[Chicago Skyway]] — manages, operates and maintains the {{cvt|12.5|km}} Chicago Skyway toll road under a concession agreement which runs until 2104
* [[Compañía Logística de Hidrocarburos|CLH]] — provides refined oil products transportation and storage in Spain and the U.K.
* [[Confederation Bridge]] — a {{cvt|12.9|km}} bridge between New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island
* [[DynaLife]] — an Edmonton-based medical laboratory servicing northern and central Alberta with more than 18 million tests annually.
* [[Ellevio]] — Sweden's second largest electricity distributor supplying approximately 900,000 customers
* GNL Quintero — LNG regasification terminal supplying Santiago, Chile and surrounding region
* Indinfravit — five operational toll road concessions in India.
* Leeward Renewable Energy — 19 operating windfarms across nine U.S. states with a capacity of 1.7-gigawatt
* LifeLabs — a community laboratory services provider, performing more than 100 million lab tests annually serving 19 million patients in Canada
* [[London City Airport]] — the closest airport to Central London
* [[Midland Cogeneration Venture|MCV]] — a natural gas-fired combined heat and power plant in Michigan with a 1,600+ MW electricity capacity, and 1.5 million pounds per hour process steam production capacity
* NET4GAS — Exclusive gas transmission system operator in the Czech Republic, operating more than {{cvt|3,800|km}} of pipelines and transporting 45 billion m<sup>3</sup> of natural gas annually
* NextBridge Infrastructure — NextBridge is a partnership between OMERS Infrastructure, NextEra Energy and Enbridge established to develop a {{cvt|450|km}} regulated transmission line in northern Ontario
* [[New Jersey Lottery]] — a 15-year contract to manage it
* Nova Scotia Schools — 16 public schools in Nova Scotia, which have been leased to the Province through 2020
* [[Oncor]] — a transmission and distribution company in Texas, providing electricity to more than 10 million customers via more than {{convert|119,000|mile}} of transmission and distribution lines
* [[Port of Melbourne]] — a port that is visited by more than 3,000 ships per year
* [[Scotia Gas Networks]] — The U.K.'s second largest gas distribution network, supplying approximately 5.8 million residential, commercial and industrial consumers in Scotland and Southeast England
* Tank & Rast — a network of motorway service areas in Germany with 500 million visitors each year
* Teranet — The exclusive provider of essential, statutory electronic property search and registration services under long-term concessions in the provinces of Ontario and Manitoba
* [[Thames Water]] — a water utility in England and Wales, providing services to approximately 9 million water and 15 million wastewater customers across London and the Thames Valley

===OMERS Private Equity===
Among the private companies OPE has owned and subsequently sold is [[Marketwired]].<ref name="acquires-ccnmatthews">{{cite news
| url = http://www.omerscapital.com/index.cfm?PID=16044&PIDList=16044&PressID=1082&ACT=Display
| title = OMERS Capital Partners Acquires CCNMatthews
| publisher = OMERS Capital Partners
| date = 2006-12-26
| access-date = 2008-07-17
}}</ref>


== Recent and current operations ==
OMERS and [[Apax Partners]] (a fund OMERS had invested in) previously invested in [[Cengage Learning]], a large education resource company formerly known as Thomson Learning before OMERS and [[Apax Partners]] bought it on May 11, 2007. Some parts of Thomson Learning had been sold off to other groups before this sale. Among Cengage's major brands are [[Gale (Cengage)|Gale]] (formerly Thomson Gale) and Nelson Education (Nelson Canada, not Nelson USA Education). {{see also|Cengage Learning#Brands}}
In March 2017, OMERS acquired a stake in Kemble, the UK holding company of [[Thames Water]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Ambrose|first1=Jillian|title=Macquarie sells off final stake in Thames Water|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2017/03/14/macquarie-sells-final-stake-thames-water/|access-date=15 March 2017|work=The Telegraph|date=14 March 2017}}</ref> The deeply-indebted water business became embroiled in a financial crisis from 2023, and in May 2024, OMERS, then Thames' biggest shareholder, issued a "full writedown" of its 31.7% stake in Kemble, signalling the shares were now worth nothing.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ambrose |first1=Jillian |title=Thames Water’s biggest investor cuts value of its stake to zero |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/article/2024/may/17/thames-water-investor-cuts-value-stake-zero-omers |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=Guardian |date=17 May 2024}}</ref>


In November 2023, OMERS announced the acquisition of a 5% indirect stake in [[Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment]] (MLSE), the parent company of the [[Toronto Maple Leafs]] and the [[Toronto Raptors]], for $400 million. The stake was purchased through a 20% direct investment in Kilmer Sports Inc (KSI), which is owned by MLSE Chairman [[Larry Tanenbaum]]. After the transaction, Tanenbaum will continue as chairman, holding an 80% stake in KSI, while OMERS will function purely as a financial investor without involvement in the operational decisions of MLSE or its teams.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-11-06 |title=Canada's OMERS buys 5% indirect stake in Toronto Raptors-parent MLSE for $400 mln |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/canadas-omers-buys-5-indirect-stake-toronto-raptors-parent-mlse-400-mln-2023-11-06/ |access-date=2023-11-07}}</ref>
In 2019, OMERS ventures launched a $315M European Venture fund, a fully owned subsidiary of OMERS Ventures led by Managing Partner Harry Briggs.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://social.techcrunch.com/2019/03/25/omers-ventures-europe/|title=Omers Ventures outs €300M European fund — Q&A with Managing Partner Harry Briggs|website=TechCrunch|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-06}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==

Latest revision as of 10:11, 21 May 2024

Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System
OMERS
Company typeStatutory corporation[1]
IndustryPension fund
Founded1962; 62 years ago (1962)
HeadquartersEY Tower
900-100 Adelaide Street West
Toronto, Ontario
M5H 0E2
Area served
Participating employers and employees in Ontario, Canada
Key people
Blake Hutcheson (CEO)
George Cooke (Board chair, Administration Corporation)
Michael Rolland (CEO, Sponsors Corporation)
Frank Ramagnano (Board chair, Sponsors Corporation)
OMERS funded status on a smoothed basis was 97% in 2023
Total assetsC$128.6 billion (2023)[2]
OwnerThe participating employers and employees of the OMERS pension plans
Number of employees
estimated 1000
ParentOMERS Administration Corporation Board of Directors
DivisionsOMERS Infrastructure
OMERS Capital Markets
OMERS Private Equity
Oxford Properties
Websiteomers.com

The Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System[3] (OMERS) is a Canadian public pension fund, headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. OMERS is a defined benefit, jointly sponsored, multi-employer public pension plan created in 1962 by Ontario provincial statute to administer retirement benefits and manage pension investment funds of local government employees in the Canadian province of Ontario. As of December 31, 2022, OMERS had C$124 billion of assets under management.[2] OMERS serves over 1,000 participating employers and more than half a million active, deferred and retired employees. OMERS members are employed by municipalities, school boards, transit systems, local electrical distribution companies, police service boards, fire fighting and paramedic services, children's aid societies and associated local agencies, boards and commissions.[4]

In 2010, this fund assumed the pensions of firefighters, police officers, emergency physicians, employees of the Children's Aid Society, school employees other than teachers, public transport employees and Ontario Hydro employees.[5]

Organization

[edit]

OMERS is governed by the Ontario Municipal Employee's Retirement Act, 2006, an Ontario law which superseded the older Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System Act.

Under the 2006 law, OMERS is composed of two statutory corporations.[1] In 2019, OMERS ventures launched a $315M European Venture fund, a fully owned subsidiary of OMERS Ventures led by Managing Partner Harry Briggs.[6]

OMERS is a partner of the World Economic Forum.[7]

Recent and current operations

[edit]

In March 2017, OMERS acquired a stake in Kemble, the UK holding company of Thames Water.[8] The deeply-indebted water business became embroiled in a financial crisis from 2023, and in May 2024, OMERS, then Thames' biggest shareholder, issued a "full writedown" of its 31.7% stake in Kemble, signalling the shares were now worth nothing.[9]

In November 2023, OMERS announced the acquisition of a 5% indirect stake in Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE), the parent company of the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Toronto Raptors, for $400 million. The stake was purchased through a 20% direct investment in Kilmer Sports Inc (KSI), which is owned by MLSE Chairman Larry Tanenbaum. After the transaction, Tanenbaum will continue as chairman, holding an 80% stake in KSI, while OMERS will function purely as a financial investor without involvement in the operational decisions of MLSE or its teams.[10]

See also

[edit]
[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Omers Administration Corporation" (PDF). cavalluzzo.com. Retrieved 2020-11-13.
  2. ^ a b "OMERS reports 2022 results" (PDF). OMERS. 2023-02-24. Retrieved 2021-02-24.
  3. ^ "About OMERS". OMERS. Retrieved 2020-09-17.
  4. ^ "About OMERS". OMERS. Retrieved 2020-09-17.
  5. ^ "Page Not Found". www.omers.com. Retrieved 2022-08-05. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  6. ^ "Omers Ventures outs €300M European fund — Q&A with Managing Partner Harry Briggs". TechCrunch. 25 March 2019. Retrieved 2020-02-06.
  7. ^ "OMERS". World Economic Forum. Archived from the original on 2022-11-06. Retrieved 2022-11-06.
  8. ^ Ambrose, Jillian (14 March 2017). "Macquarie sells off final stake in Thames Water". The Telegraph. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
  9. ^ Ambrose, Jillian (17 May 2024). "Thames Water's biggest investor cuts value of its stake to zero". Guardian. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
  10. ^ "Canada's OMERS buys 5% indirect stake in Toronto Raptors-parent MLSE for $400 mln". Reuters. 2023-11-06. Retrieved 2023-11-07.