Long Island Power Authority (LIPA, "lie-pah") is a municipal subdivision of the State of New York that owns the electric transmission and electric distribution system serving all of Long Island and a portion of New York City known as the Rockaways. LIPA was originally created under the Long Island Power Act of 1985 to acquire the Long Island Lighting Company (LILCO)'s electric and natural gas infrastructure after the cancellation of the Shoreham Nuclear Power Plant. LIPA acquired LILCO's transmission system in May 1998, while the remainder of LILCO's natural gas-related infrastructure merged with Brooklyn Union Gas to form KeySpan Energy.