The province takes the next step towards selling Hydro One

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The province has taken the next step towards selling Hydro One, filing documents for an initial public offering in the company.

The documents were filed with the Ontario Securities Commission and its counterparts. It provides an overview of Hydro One, which lists $22.6 billion in total assets. The documents will give investors an idea of what the initial public offering will look like. The sale of the majority of Hydro One is the biggest privatization of a Canadian public asset in a generation. Both of the province’s opposition parties are against the sale, saying it will send already high electricty rates even higher. Finance Minister Charles Sousa says that is not the case. “We all understand, we all agree that theres been some difficulty in regard to the operation of Hydro One as it is now. And that has to be improved in order for us to find better governance, greater transparancy greater control. So we’ve revamped the board, we’ve reveamped the executive and were attracting some high power people to move the company.”

The province hopes to raise $9 billion, to help fund a 10-year, $130 billion program for public transit and infrastructure. Premier Kathleen Wynne also promises to use $5 billion dollars to pay down Hydro debt.

Tory MPP Todd Smith reacted to the Liberal’s plan for Hydro One with some harsh criticism. “It seems like this government doesn’t care about electricity rates in Ontario. They’re focused on getting some bang for their buck right now and at the end of the day we’re not going to have any control over our electricity rates.” Smith believes people in rural Ontario are going to end up paying for this deal, and will end up with big increases on their hydro bills.