Hal Kvisle said the challenging electricity industry climate is causing TransCanada to change its focus from building new power generation facilities to buying existing ones -- particularly across the "northern tier" of American states.

Unlike many U.S. power companies, TransCanada is in a strong enough financial position to go on a shopping spree.

"Our financial capacity's pretty strong so we're not limited by money," Kvisle said from his Calgary office Wednesday. "Transactions in the several billions of dollars are well within our reach."

TransCanada, known more for its large network of natural gas pipelines, has been bulking up on its other main growth platform of power generation facilities in the past couple years.

But it has also been looking at new facilities, announcing plans last month to build a 160-megawatt power plant in Montreal.

The company is set to release its second quarter results on Friday, coming off a 15 per cent increase in profits for the first three months of the year.

Having sold off many of its non-core businesses two years ago, TransCanada touts itself as a financially strong player that has shed its old image of moving ponderously slow to make deals.

Kvisle said TransCanada would prefer to buy assets, rather than acquire whole companies. And while the company has expertise in natural gas-fired facilities, it is looking at other types of power generation, including coal and hydro.

TransCanada's intention to pick up American assets during a time of increased instability in the marketplace mirrors similar plans by another Alberta-based power company, TransAlta.

Last week, TransAlta president Steve Snyder told analysts that it was looking very seriously at five projects in the northeast and northwestern United States.

As for TransCanada's gas pipeline business, the company remains disappointed by a National Energy Board ruling last month that denied its "fair rate of return" proposal to increase shipping fees on its Canadian mainline gas transmission system.

Kvisle said TransCanada was now "in a very difficult position" because the returns allowed by Canada's regulator are lower than returns from other businesses.

Kvisle said TransCanada hasn't decided whether it will appeal the NEB ruling, but one route available was to file for a higher rate of return in the forthcoming hearing.

TransCanada also said it disagreed with the province of New Brunswick's position in its ongoing hearing to secure quantities of off-shore gas from Nova Scotia instead of the fuel running straight to northeastern U.S. markets.

The hearing involves the Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline company, but TransCanada said it was interested "in the orderly pipeline development in all parts of Canada."

"We think that the marketplace should be allowed to work," said Kvisle. "And if the highest possible price for gas can be obtained in the Boston marketplace rather than the New Brunswick marketplace, then the gas should flow to the highest price."