Noel Dempsey (Meath, Fianna Fail)

Three or four years ago, CER tried to get the market to provide an interconnector but was not successful as there was no interest shown. People wanted to go down the route of getting an interconnector with a regulated rate of return as they were not going to operate on a market basis. Had the interconnector been absolutely essential, it would have been useful for CER to have been in a position to direct, for example, the ESB which would be the most competent at that stage, to provide the interconnector, without a competitive tendering process. We should not confuse that kind of direction in an emergency situation. We should not assume if that were to happen, that the ESB would not be obliged to go and seek competitive tenders themselves for aspects of the competition. It is not a free hand with an option to spend as much money as possible. There would be competitive tendering specifically for the building and so on.

It is always prudent to leave oneself as much latitude as possible with regard to legislation. I acknowledge that the courts increasingly decide we must narrow everything down and spell everything out and try to foresee every possible situation. It is prudent that this provision remain in this Bill to allow for maximum flexibility.

The Deputies asked me to provide examples of circumstances in which it might be used. The ESB owns the transmission lines so it may be the body that has to do it. I cannot envisage the circumstances where it might arise but it certainly will not arise within the next five or six years because we know what we are doing regarding the North-South interconnector and the east-west interconnector. It is not likely to emerge until sometime after 2012 if we go down the route of further interconnection either to the UK or Europe.

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