About GridSmartCity and the Round Table

Host Utility

The GridSmartCity® Round Table is a presentation of GridSmartCity, a co-operative of utilities, Smart Grid innovators, industry regulators, government, academia and other electricity industry stakeholders.

The event attracts a broad cross-section of industry to share, debate and implement approaches and initiatives to help shape tomorrow’s electricity sector.

Our thirty-two partner organizations work collectively towards productivity and efficiency improvements, advancements in self-healing grids, conservation program implementation, the emergence of renewable energy and community energy planning.

Visit gridsmartcity.com to learn more

GridSmartCity Partners

Corporate Partners

ElsterEaton CorporationK-Line GroupLightworksMoloney ElectricNBM EngineeringOlameterPioneer EnergyS&C ElectricUnion GasStresscreteTD Commercial BankingWesco

Generation Partners

Ontario Power Generation

Academic Partners

McMaster UniversityMohawk CollegeUniversity of Waterloo

Regulatory & Agency Partners

The Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO)

Electrical Safety Authority (ESA)Plug’nDrive Ontario

The Round Table is made possible with the generous support of these companies

Government Partners

Province of OntarioCity of Burlington

Utility Partners

Burlington Hydro Cambridge & North Dumfries HydroGuelph Hydro Electric SystemsHalton Hills HydroKingston HydroKitchener Wilmot HydroMilton HydroNiagara Peninsula Energy Oakville HydroWaterloo North Hydro

Ontario Power Generation (OPG) is an Ontario-based electricity generation company whose principal business is the generation and sale of electricity in Ontario. Its focus is on the efficient production and sale of electricity from our generation assets, while operating in a safe, open and environmentally responsible manner. OPG's generating portfolio has a total capacity of over 19,000 megawatts making it one of the largest power generators in North America.

S&C Electric Company is a global provider of equipment and services for electric power systems. Founded in 1911, S&C designs and manufactures switching and protection products for electric power transmission and distribution. S&C's products help deliver electric power efficiently and reliably. Some are used to switch circuits. Others minimize damage to equipment in the event of a fault or reduce the area of an outage by automatically rerouting power flow. And S&C's sophisticated power-quality products can deliver uninterrupted power for an entire facility, for crucial process industries. In addition, S&C offers a wide range of engineering, laboratory, and testing services for electric utilities and commercial, industrial, and institutional power systems.

TD Commercial Banking, together with Agriculture Services and Merchant Services, serves the unique needs of large and small Canadian businesses by offering a broad range of customized products and services to help business owners meet their financial goals. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with more than 85,000 employees in offices around the world, The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Group (TD). TD offers a full range of financial products and services to approximately 22 million customers worldwide

Presenting Organization

Ontario’s electricity distributors face ongoing pressures to be more efficient, while providing greater value to both shareholders and customers.

The theme of this year’s Round Table – Horizontal and Vertical Integration: Strategic Partnerships – LDCs and the Municipalities they Serve - draws on the notion of scale and scope, but is taken from the perspective of horizontal and vertical integration. It’s about improving efficiency and providing value, and realizing strategic alignment with municipal owners and like-minded industry partners. It’s in line with the provincial government’s desire that LDCs find ways to achieve greater efficiencies through horizontal integration (scale) and vertical integration (scope).

Vertically integrated entities are united through a common entity. Each member of the supply chain produces a different product or market-specific service, and the products combine to satisfy a common need. Vertical integration can help reduce costs and improve efficiency by reducing turnaround time, among other advantages.

Horizontal integration describes the acquisition of additional business activities that are at the same level of the value chain in similar or different industries. It’s a business strategy whereby a company creates or acquires production units for outputs which are alike – a single firm or several firms involved in the same level of production and sharing resources at that level.

Thank you for attending and contributing!

Thursday, November 28th, 2013 7:30 am to 1:30 pmRattleSnake Point Golf & Country Club

4th Annual

Our theme for 2013

7:30 am Networking Breakfast 8:40 am Opening Remarks

Art Skidmore, President and CEO, Halton Hills Hydro and Chair, GridSmartCity Cooperative

8:50 am Greetings – Brian Penman, Chair, Milton Hydro Distribution Inc.

8:55 am Welcome from the Town of Milton – Mayor Gordon Krantz

9:00 am Economic and Financial Outlook for 2014Craig Alexander, Senior Vice President and Chief EconomistTD Bank Group

9:45 am Canada and Canadians in a Changing World

Peter Mansbridge, Chief Correspondent of CBC News and Anchor of The National

10:30 am Refreshment Break 11:00 am Finding Solutions through Vertical and Horizontal Integration – All-delegate Breakout Session

Moderator – Gord McBrien, CEO, Ontario Energy Network 12:10 pm Closing Remarks / Adjournment

12:15 pm Networking Lunch

Registration from 7:30 to 8:30 am in the front foyer. All events take place in the Rattle Snake Point Golf & Country Club Main Conference Hall.

Agenda

Strategic Partnerships: LDCs and the Municipalities they Serve

Breakout Moderator

Gord McBrien, CEO, Ontario Energy Network

As CEO at Ontario Energy Network, Gord McBrien leads the organization’s mission to facilitate increased communications, dialogue and networking opportunities across all energy industry segments.

McBrien was formerly the Director of Strategic Business Relationships at Ontario Power Generation where he developed and cultivated multi-level relationships with major corporate accounts. The majority of Gord’s career, over 40 years, has been spent with the former Ontario Hydro dealing directly with Municipal Utilities and Retail customers. He holds an Engineering Degree and MBA from the University of Toronto, and is a member of the PEO.

Thought Starters

Why is flexibility key and how can it be interwoven into business models?

How can innovation in the sector be unleashed to the maximum customer advantage?

Where can economies of scope and scale best be realized?

Looking at energy management technology-enablers, what new types of business opportunities are ahead?

How radical are the required shifts for utilities, distributors or generators to become customer focused by tomorrow‘s standards? How can groups such as GridSmartCity’s new utility cooperative pave new ground leading to new efficiencies?

Key Notes

Canada and Canadians in a Changing World

PETER MANSBRIDGE - CBC NEWS

Economic & Financial Outlook for 2014

CRAIG ALEXANDER - TD BANK

Thank you for attending!Please Join us again in 2014

Peter anchors CBC’s flagship nightly news program, The National, and all CBC News specials. He is also host of CBC News Network’s Mansbridge: One on One. In more than 40 years with CBC News, Mansbridge has provided comprehensive coverage of the most significant stories in Canada and around the world. Mansbridge has received 12 Gemini Awards for excellence in broadcast journalism.

He has received numerous honorary degrees from universities across the country, and he has also been recognized by leading universities in the United States and the United Kingdom. In 2008, Mansbridge was made an officer of the Order of Canada by Governor Gen. Michaëlle Jean. In 2009, he was named Chancellor of Mount Allison University in New Brunswick. In addition to his broadcast career, Mansbridge is also the author of the national bestseller “Mansbridge One on One.”

Craig Alexander is the Senior Vice President and Chief Economist for TD Bank Group. In that role, he manages a large team of economists that support all of the divisions and clients of TD – the second largest bank in Canada and the eighth largest bank in the United States. Craig has 15 years of experience in the private sector as an economic and financial forecaster. He is also a regular commentator on public policy.

Each year, Craig travels across the United States and Canada speaking at more than a hundred events about economic and financial developments. He personally writes research on a wide array of subjects. In addition to his role at TD, Craig is a strong advocate for the cause of literacy and is a champion of the charitable sector. He also serves on the Board of Directors for several non-profit groups. Craig is a Trustee of two pension plans and is on the editorial board for the quarterly journal Canadian Public Policy. He holds a graduate degree in economics from the University of Toronto.

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