The ESB has been accused of reinforcing its dominant position in the Republic by selling excess power from its new Northern Ireland power plant into the Southern market.
The 400-megawatt Coolkeeragh plant in Derry is due to open officially in March, but yesterday the ESB acknowledged it would not be selling all the power in the Northern Irish market.
Viridian, its main competitor, said it would be raising the issue with the Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) and asking whether the move was anti-competitive.
A Viridian spokesman said it appeared ESB was unable to sell the output in Northern Ireland and was transferring it instead into the Republic via the North-South interconnector. "This simply entrenches the ESB's dominant position further," said a Viridian spokesman.
It is understood about 155 megawatts of power will be exported into the Southern market and will be sold to industrial and commercial customers.
The Coolkeeragh project is being handled by ESB International (ESBI). According to ESBI, Coolkeeragh will use the most up-to-date gas turbine technology from General Electric and will be almost twice as efficient as existing power stations in Northern Ireland.
Yesterday, the ESB defended the decision to transfer power into the Southern market. "It has always been ESB's intention that a percentage of the power produced at Coolkeeragh generation station would be sold to the eligible market in the Republic," the company said in a statement.
"ESB has supported the creation of an all-island market since its inception by the two governments and the Coolkeeragh project has been developed to participate in that context. ESB purchased 155 megawatts of capacity across the interconnector last November in the same way as other electricity producers purchased capacity."
However, Viridian said the move would simply allow ESB to maintain a dominant position throughout Ireland. "The dominance of the ESB is understood to be the greatest hurdle to new investment coming into the Irish market," the company said.
The North-South interconnector is becoming a key source of power for all the electricity companies. Over the last few years all the main players - ESB, Viridian, Airtricity and Bord Gáis - have used the interconnector to bring in more supply.
The Government also strongly supports the continuation of the interconnector in case there are shortages in the Republic's supply.
Viridian is currently increasing its presence in the Southern market by building a second gas-fired power station at Huntstown, north county Dublin.
By 2011 it hopes to have 750 megawatts of power available in the Republic.
ESOP queries dividend policy in light of €511m pension deficit:
The chairman of the Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP) at ESB voiced strong concerns about the company's decision to pay the Government a large dividend, while presiding over a €511 million deficit in the group pension scheme.
Speaking at the company's annual general meeting last June, Mr David Beattie said the pension deficit was a "most serious issue facing the company". His speech was not circulated at the time and press were not admitted to the a.g.m. Mr Beattie said that, as shareholders, the members of the ESOP had a right to question the dividend policy.
According to a copy of the speech, obtained by The Irish Times, he asked ESB chairman Mr Tadhg O'Donoghue: "What is the sense of paying out an increasing dividend - last year 25 per cent of net profits, this year 27 per cent - when there is a requirement for major ongoing capital expenditure of the levels mentioned by you and this sort of hole in the pension scheme?
"One has to ask where is this dividend policy going and is it consistent with the company's present position," he said. He later formally opposed a resolution allowing a dividend to be paid.
Worker director and deputy chairman Mr Joe La Cumbre clashed with Mr O'Donoghue recently over the pension deficit. Mr La Cumbre claims he was dismissed by Mr O'Donoghue and is considering his legal options.
