Electricity price control

STRICTER price controls on Northern Ireland Electricity being proposed by the industry regulator, Offer, (the Office of Electricity Regulation), which would result in reductions of around 6 per cent in the cost of electricity to large industrial users, have been welcomed by the business community ink Northern Ireland.

NIE has until the end of the month to respond to the regulators proposals, which would come into effect at the beginning of April next year. If it refuses to accept them, the regulator could refer the company to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission.

The director general of electricity supply for Northern Ireland, Mr Douglas McIldoon, said NIE's response would be crucial.

"Since 1992," he said, "NIE has produced significant gains in efficiency, and the price control review is aimed at reallocating those gains and creating a framework within which, the company can become still more efficient."

The economy spokesman for the SDLP, Mr Sean Farren, said generation costs were the largest component of the final, price of electricity, and he hoped that Mr McIldoon would now tackle the "excessively high" prices being charged by the generating companies.

The cost of generating electricity has fallen by around 20 per cent since the industry was privatised in 1993, but long term agreements between the generators and NIE mean that these savings have not been passed on to the consumer.

As a result, it is now estimated that electricity in Northern Ireland is 23 per cent more expensive than in the rest of the UK, and 25 per cent dearer than in the Republic. One of the generating companies, the Derry based Coolkeeragh Power, recently announced record pre tax profits of £6.4 million for 1995, on a turnover of more than £20 million.