Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Humphreys, the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Deputy Doherty, the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy McEntee, and the Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, Deputy English, have all spoken with me about this issue, particularly on the publication of the ESB tender. A very lengthy process has to be gone through. The notice in the European Journal was published. That has to be given one month. The issue tendered to interested bidders, and that will take a three month period. The post-tender evaluation and negotiation will take four months, and then there is an approval and cool-off period for a month. That brings us up to June 2018. That allows for the planning process in Northern Ireland to be completed. The processes that we are involved in relating to independent studies will also be completed. The independent studies, particularly the study concerning compensation, were raised with me by the public representatives when they met with me in my office last July, and on foot of that we decided to investigate the situation across Europe on it and to see what information came from that investigation.

See this speech in context