ESB inefficiency adds ?100m to home bills
CONSUMERS are forking out an extra ?100m on their electricity bills due to poor management at the ESB.
This revelation is contained in a damning new consultants' report on the Irish electricity sector and comes as the Government plans a radical shake-up of the ESB and the energy supply market.
High labour costs and inefficiencies at ESB power stations are adding up to ?100 million on bills, compared to other European homes.
The Minister for Natural Resources Noel Dempsey yesterday revealed that independent operator Eirgrid will take control of a major supply route when it comes on stream in 2012 - the first time a private operator will have control of such a major piece of national infrastructure.
Launching a Green Paper on energy at Government Buildings - the first in 30 years - Mr Dempsey said the State was considering taking control of a land bank of suitable sites for power stations which was currently held by the ESB.
He also maintained that nuclear power plants would not be built here due to "security, safety and environmental" concerns.
The Green Paper, which is open for public consultation, also plans a number of changes to the energy sector in order to foster greater market competition and help reduce prices.
New measures include:
* Completion of the north/south and east/west interconnectors by 2012. These interconnectors will facilitate the transfer of electricity from Northern Ireland and the UK. Eirgrid will operate the east/west system.
* 30pc of all electricity must be generated by renewable sources of energy by 2020, 98pc of which will come from wind.
* Turf-fired power stations will be adapted to burn environmentally-friendly biofuels such as wood, which should help prolong their lifespan.
* Up to 2pc of cars, trucks and buses will have to use biofuels by 2008, and that figure will rise to 5.75pc by 2010.
* A reduction in energy demand of 20pc by 2020.
There are no costings, but Mr Dempsey said a range of tax incentives for research and development would be announced in the December budget. He said that although the targets on renewable energy would not result in Ireland complying with its obligations under the Kyoto agreement, "it will help us to go some way to solve the target, but we won't go all the way".
The new policy also marks the beginning of a major shake-up of the ESB. About one-third of the company's generating capacity is set to come off-line by 2013, and it is unlikely the ESB will be given permission to replace this with new stations.
Instead, it is hoped that other companies will come into the market and build new plants.
Wind Energy Association welcomed the doubling of renewable energy targets to 30pc of all electricity consumed by 2020.
The Green Party said the paper was "disappointing" given that people were waiting 30 years for an energy policy.
Fine Gael criticised the lack of costings, claiming the document was "little more than aspirational", while Labour said the target of 30pc of electricity coming from renewable sources by 2020 showed a "lack of ambition".
Welcoming the Green Paper, employers group IBEC said the Government would have to back up its commitments with "real actions".
- Paul Melia
