Hazelwood was jointly owned by Engie (formerly GDF Suez), with a 72% share and Mitsui & Co. with a 28% share. In 2014, Hazelwood employed 495 staff directly and on average 300 contractors. On 3 November 2016, Engie announced that the entire Hazelwood plant would be closed at the end of March 2017 giving five months notice of the closure. The power station closed in March 2017. When the power station closed, wholesale prices in Victoria were up 85% on 2016, according to the Australian Energy Regulator, and for the first time in almost a decade, the state relied on energy from interstate to meet its needs.