Some 4,979 farmers benefited under the farm electrification scheme between 1990 and the end of 1997. The Exchequer contribution under the scheme during that period was £3,748,839. Under standard terms ESB normally bears 50 per cent of the cost of new connections but the board make an additional 10 per cent contribution under this scheme, which amounted to approximately £1,874,420 in the period in question.
The principle of uniform charging for services set out in An Action Programme for the Millennium is a long established practice in the case of ESB tariffs and electricity customers are not discriminated against in the unit price they are charged because of their location.
In regard to connection charges, however, rural customers can suffer significant variations in charges depending on their location and distance from the network. ESB are currently reviewing their connection charges policy with a view to introducing a standard connection charge for a guaranteed level and quality of supply for the vast majority of rural customers.
