Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 13: To ask the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the position regarding recent reports that the European Commission is proposing to group the new all-island Irish market with the British market as a European energy region and declare the British Regulator, Ofgem, as the lead regulator for the two island market; the impact of same on the Irish market and the Commission for Energy Regulation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13607/06]

John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I assume that the Deputy is referring to the electricity regional initiative recently launched by the European Regulators Group for Electricity and Gas, ERGEG. This initiative is aimed at accelerating the single European energy market by promoting seven electricity regional energy market projects. The European Council conclusions encourage the acceleration of regional energy co-operation within the EU and facilitating the integration of regional markets. As one of the most peripheral markets in terms of the EU energy market, Ireland has a great deal to gain from such initiatives.

This regional market initiative by the European regulators is welcome. It builds on the work of the Department and the Commission for Energy Regulation, CER, along with counterparts in Northern Ireland, in developing an all-island energy market and specifically the single electricity market by 1 July 2007.

It is envisaged that regional markets will act as stepping stones towards a single European energy market which will allow the benefits of liberalisation to reach electricity consumers across Europe in the form of competitive prices, secure supplies, innovation and choice.

Under the initiative, the national regulator at the centre of each regional market has been designated as the lead regulator to define the geographic scope of the project, and to chair a small regional co-ordination committee of regulators. As part of the ERGEG electricity regional initiative, Ireland, along with the UK and part of France, is included in one regional electricity market. Within this regional framework, the UK regulator, OFGEM, will co-ordinate the work and direct working groups made up of the other regulators, including the CER, the transmission system operators and, where appropriate, market operators.

This initiative does not impact on or replace the role or the statutory functions of the CER in regulating the Irish electricity and gas markets. The initiative is designed to complement, not cut across, existing frameworks or national Government efforts to integrate markets. The key objective of the regional electricity initiative is to identify and seek to remove barriers, which may be hindering the growth of competitive electricity markets.