Mr. Fintan Slye:

I have not done the maths on that. I do not have the number off the top of my head. I outlined the cost savings in the tens of millions of euro, rising from 2020 to 2030. They have been reviewed with the regulators.

There is an immediate and urgent need in Northern Ireland with regard to security of supply, as the system will go into deficit from 2020 onwards. It is a real and urgent need. By building the second North-South interconnector, we allow for generation to be pooled across the island, effectively, which is how we address the security of supply issue. Over the long run, that delivers benefits to all consumers as there is a bigger portfolio of generation available. In the long term, all electricity consumers on the island will benefit from that.

In line with Government policy published in 2012 and the commitment we made in 2014, there is an element of community gain associated with the development of the North-South interconnector. We have been quite upfront and explicit about that, and it is part of the planning application for the North-South interconnector. We recognise that any infrastructure that benefits society and the economy as a whole will have an impact, to a greater extent, on those communities that have to host it. That is quite clear and we understand the issue.

The Deputy mentioned an issue in passing. Although I am not sure about the reference, he spoke about the North-South interconnector going underground when it crosses the Border. The planning application that exists in the Republic of Ireland and the application made in Northern Ireland are for overhead structures from the transmission station in Tyrone to the transmission station in Meath. If there was a miscommunication, I should be clear that it does not go underground when it crosses the Border.