TORONTO - Energy Minister Chris Bentley hasn't abandoned the idea of having a "real name" for the merger of the Ontario Power Authority and the Independent Electricity System Operator after all.
Bentley complained the energy sector is full of agencies known by acronyms like the OPA and IESO when he announced the planned merger of the two electricity planning agencies.
The minister said at the time he wanted the new agency to have a real name, but in legislation introduced today, it is known as the Ontario Electricity System Operator, or OESO.
However, a spokesman for Bentley says OESO is "a working title" in the legislation and the government will come up with an actual name as the merger progresses.
The government hopes to save about $25 million a year by merging the two agencies -- a move it says will increase efficiency and make the system more affordable.
The NDP want the Liberals to go even further and merge the new planning agency, the OESO, with Ontario Power Generation, OPG, and the transmission utility, Hydro One.
The Progressive Conservatives had promised to completely shut down the Ontario Power Authority if they had won last fall's election.
