Ontario Premier Ernie Eves quashed persistent rumours today that he plans to delay, or even cancel, the imminent sale of the province’s hydro grid.
“No, absolutely not,” said Eves, when asked if he would halt the privatization of Hydro One. “It hasn’t even crossed my mind.”
Speculation was rampant Wednesday among politicians and opponents to the sale that Eves, who officially took office earlier this week, was going to stop the selloff.
Hydro One is a Crown corporation that’s being sold to the public this spring in what is expected to be the biggest initial public offering in Canadian history – an IPO expected to raise about $5 billion for the Ontario government.
The Toronto-based corporation is one of three major companies created when the Ontario government broke up the former Ontario Hydro in the late 1990s.
The company operates the transmission towers and lines that carry power across the province. It also sells electricity to 1.2 million retail consumers.
It earned a net profit last year of $374 million on revenue of $3.46 billion.
Proceeds from the public share offering are to be used to pay down the debt of the former Ontario Hydro.
Last week, two unions went to court last week in an attempt to block the sale of shares for the utility.
Lawyers for the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada and the Canadian Union of Public Employees, have argued that the sale of Hydro One contravenes the Electricity Act.
Although the Electricity Act allows the Ontario government to acquire and hold the shares in the corporation, they say, it does not contain a provision to allow for the sale of those shares.
The unions represent about 238,000 members, about 30,000 of whom work for public utility corporations.
A court decision is expected later this week or early next week.
