It is understood that Ireland has secured a concession from Europe on the fishing of certain species of deep sea fish.
The Irish allocation is understood to have been increased significantly but an overall agreement has yet to be reached.
The Minister for Communications and Natural Resources, Mr Dermot Ahern, earlier condemned the EU Commission's proposals to allocate over 90 per cent of fishing rights in Irish deepwater areas to French and Spanish fleets.
The EU Fisheries Council met today to discuss the Commission's proposals to cut the Union's fishing fleet in an effort to prevent the collapse of fish stocks.
Speaking in Brussels where he was attending talks on EU fisheries policy, Mr Ahern called the proposals "unacceptable".
The Commission is reviewing the Common Fisheries Policy, amid much criticism from Ireland and several other memberstates.