The prospect of lower electricity prices for businesses in Northern Ireland moved a step closer today with the arrival of the first of two undersea electricity cables linking it to the British grid.
The cable landing was the latest milestone in Northern Ireland Electricity's Stg£150 million Moyle Interconnector project.
When completed at the end of the year the Interconnector - with two 55km lengths of cable - will join Northern Ireland to the electricity system in Britain, and through it to Europe.
As a consequence, businesses will be able to purchase their electricity wherever in Europe it can be obtained cheapest. The Moyle Interconnector could potentially supply a third of all Northern Ireland's electricity needs.
Welcoming the move forward NIE managing director Mr Harry McCracken said it heralded the arrival of "real competition in electricity generation to Northern Ireland for the first time".
However, there will be no relief for domestic users who suffer from some of the highest electricity prices in the UK.
Long-term local generation contracts put in place at the time of privatisation would mean that NIE was obliged to continue to purchase electricity from "uncompetitive sources", said Mr McCracken.
He said it was an issue that he hoped the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment Committee would address.
"Only when all customers in Northern Ireland are able to access competitively generated electricity will there be a significant downward pressure on prices," he said.
PA