Mr. Rodney Doyle:

That is okay. We support it.

I will pick up from where I was and reiterate the ISEM has brought real efficiencies to how we manage the generation and supply of electricity across the island as a whole. It is helping to keep the price of electricity minimised and ensure that the Irish economy retains cost competitiveness with other economies across the world. From a system operator perspective, I encourage the committee to ensure that the benefits derived from integration of electricity systems North and South is retained no matter what kind of Brexit we end up with. A failure to preserve the success of the single electricity market would have a negative impact on prices in Northern Ireland and Ireland, which we do not want to see happen. We call on the policy makers and negotiators on Brexit to continue their support for the current approach, which would allow us to continue operating a clear model into the future.

We were pleased last week to launch the EirGrid Group strategy for 2020 to 2025. At the heart of this strategy is the continued operation of energy and electricity policy on an all-island basis. It also has at its core the drive to decarbonise our way of living, which is dependent on fossil fuels, and move to one based on sustainable sources of energy.

As the committee assesses the current status of sectoral policy areas, we draw its attention to the success that has been achieved to date from North-South integration of electricity systems. We draw particular attention to the enormous strides that have been made in the area of energy, most importantly the integration of high levels of energy from renewable sources into the system. Any decision to move from this level of energy co-operation due to the fallout from a hard Brexit would only serve to unpick the good work that has been done to date, something that we do not want to see happen. We ask that the committee continue to provide its support and use its voice of influence.

I thank the committee for the opportunity to present and for its members' attention. I would be happy to take questions.