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Photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

In the energy file, a frequent target of Lysyk’s, her report looked at a program that pays power generators for fuel, maintenance and operating costs when the IESO puts them on standby to supply energy.

Nine generators claimed up to $260 million in ineligible costs between 2006 and 2015, Lysyk said, and about two-thirds of that has been paid back. One natural gas plant in Brampton, Ont., “gamed” the system for about $100 million, the OEB has reported.

Generators claimed thousands of dollars a year for staff car washes, carpet cleaning, road repairs, landscaping, scuba gear and raccoon traps, “which have nothing to do with running power equipment on standby,” Lysyk wrote. One generator claimed about $175,000 for coveralls and parkas over two years, she said.

The program was originally started in 2003, when Ontario’s grid had supply issues, though now the province has surplus power.

The OEB found in 2014 that the standby program was relied on less than one per cent of the time to meet domestic demand, and has recommended repeatedly that it be scaled back to stop reimbursing generators for certain operating and maintenance costs. Doing so would save ratepayers $30 million a year, the OEB says.

The IESO is working on a redesign of the electricity market, but Lysyk noted that some members of a working group advising the system operator on that work for companies that have claimed ineligible costs. One member resigned his post on Friday.