Chairman and members of the committee, I join our chairperson in welcoming the opportunity to appear before the joint committee to brief members on aspects of EirGrid's operations, specifically the development and expansion of the transmission grid. As members will be aware, the electricity industry is a complex and sophisticated sector which generates electricity from multiple fuel sources. It transmits electricity across the country to more than 100 bulk supply points located in each region, from which it distributes power to each home, farm, industry and office block. It also arranges for the tariffs and financial flows that keep the whole operation flowing smoothly.
The electricity grid is central to the electricity industry. It is effectively the backbone of the power industry, holding it all together and ensuring that the same quality 50 Hz alternating current received in County Mayo or County Clare is the same 50 Hz supply received in County Cork or County Dublin.
EirGrid is the State owned company charged by the State to plan, develop, operate and ensure the maintenance of the transmission grid. We do this through the national control centre on a day-to-day, 24-7 basis. The engineers in the centre balance supply and demand to ensure sufficient supply is available at all times to meet demand and control the flow of power over the grid from the sources of generation to the different regional bulk supply points.
I have provided details on the big picture of the electricity industry and EirGrid's role in it. We have submitted a detailed report to the joint committee on our activities and a number of the significant issues and challenges we face. I will now specifically address the issue of grid development and expansion, an issue of fundamental strategic national importance in the first decade of the 21st century.
The first slide shows the transmission grid. We have three voltage levels at transmission level. The 110 kV network is shown in black, the 220 kV in green and the 400 kV network in red. To use a road analogy, the 110 kV lines are similar to national roads, the 220 kV lines are higher capacity and can be compared to dual carriageways, while the higher capacity 400 kV lines can be compared to motorways. This network has evolved over the years to keep pace with economic growth, from the first double circuit 110 kV steel line bringing power from Ardnacrusha to Dublin in 1930 to the more complex network now serving all regions and communities.
Historically, the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s saw major expansion of the 110 kV network, while the higher capacity 220 kV network was overlaid on the 110 kV network to further strengthen it during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Also in the 1980s, the 400 kV transmission lines were introduced to take output from Moneypoint in County Clare to the major load centres near Dublin. However over the past 20 years and through the high growth period of the Celtic tiger economy, investment in the grid has mainly been at the 110 kV level. To use the roads analogy again, this equates to widening the national roads and establishing roundabouts.
There has been effectively little or no development of the high capacity network, as is shown starkly in slides 2 and 3. Slide 2 shows the high capacity 220 kV and 400 kV networks and the lower capacity 110 kV lines are stripped out. Slide 3 compares the high capacity network in place in 2007 with that in place in 1989. The extent of the development of this network is highlighted in red on the 2008 map. It is clear that very little development has taken place despite an increase in flows on the network of more that 2.5 times and a doubling of the peak load from approximately 2,500 MW to 5,000 MW.
I will now examine future demand on the transmission grid as the population grows and the economy develops and how EirGrid, society and policymakers will respond to this challenge. Demand growth is one driver of grid development. During the next 20 years overall demand for electricity is projected to grow by approximately 70% to 80%. The need to provide the critical infrastructure required for balanced regional development will also drive grid development. No industry, be it pharmaceutical or information technology, will locate in a region in which there are question marks over the reliability of future power supply.
The third factor in driving grid development is the need to connect new generation plants to the grid to maintain security of supply and link the power output from these stations to the centres of customer demand. During the past nine years we have connected approximately 3,500 MW of generation plant to the networks. During the next 20 years we will need to connect another 7,000 MW. Of particular relevance are the sources of generation. We already face demand for connection to the grid from a variety of dispatchable plant, mainly gas-fired plant, and from a large number of proposed plants using renewable sources, for the most part wind farms.
We are all aware of the challenges posed by climate change and our responsibilities under the Kyoto Protocol. The Government set a target of 33% of electricity demand being met by renewable sources by 2020. The recently published all-island grid study presented to the committee last week provides evidence that it may be feasible to go beyond this target. Ireland has an abundance of renewable resources, mainly along the west coast. Meeting these targets will require major development of the grid to bring this renewable energy to where it is needed. This echoes earlier phases of grid development to bring about Ardnacrusha generation plant during the 1930s and the Moneypoint generation plant in the 1980s. The all-island grid study indicates a requirement for approximately 650 km of additional transmission infrastructure to deliver on our targets. This is the national challenge we face.
EirGrid has particular challenges, including to maintain quality, reliability and stability of the power system through the major configuration we face. It must also provide transmission access for the many power plants using renewable and conventional sources needed and provide the necessary grid capacity in a safe, reliable and affordable manner.
The question of how EirGrid and policymakers will respond to these challenges brings me to the projects in the north east. We have a number of projects in construction or development. Of particular interest to the committee are the 400 kV projects in the north east linking the Woodland station in County Meath to a new station to be built near Kingscourt, County Cavan and on through County Monaghan into Northern Ireland. The projects are required to provide for essential reinforcement of the network in the north-east area and facilitate the free flow of electricity between the two jurisdictions. We propose to develop these projects using 400 kV overhead line technology to a total length of approximately 140 km. I emphasise this is the standard form of construction for such applications globally and contains nothing new. Ireland already has 439 km of this type of construction, while Europe has more than 100,000 km. The percentage of the European 400 kV network underground is less than 1%, usually in congested urban areas or where water crossings are involved. Nowhere in the world has a line of this length and type been placed underground.
In developing the grid we are bound by statute to develop a safe, secure, reliable, economical and efficient transmission system. In developing a safe system we adhere to all national and international standards and guidelines. They include the guidelines on exposure to electric and magnetic fields promulgated by the World Health Organisation and adopted throughout Europe. These guidelines were reviewed as recently as June 2007 and the conclusion of the review which was undertaken by a panel of experts and involved evidence from the thousands of studies carried out was that there was no reason to redefine the existing guidelines. The Government published its review in March 2007 and came to the same conclusions as the World Health Organisation. EirGrid operates well within the established guidelines and will continue to do so.
As part of our application to the strategic infrastructure board we will submit a detailed report being prepared by our consultants on the cost and feasibility of putting lines underground. To facilitate the committee in its consideration of these issues, we asked our consultants to prepare an early briefing document which we circulated to members. It is based on cost information prepared for the Beauly-Denny 400 kV line project in Scotland which is going through the planning process. The consultants adapted the cost information for the Meath-Cavan and Cavan-Tyrone 400 kV projects. Extensive public consultation on these projects has been ongoing and will continue.
The Minister has announced an independent study to review all of the issues involved in underground and overhead transmission lines. EirGrid welcomes this move and notes the request across the political spectrum for such a study. I reassure the Chairman and members that EirGrid is happy to assist the study in whatever way it can.
New transmission infrastructure is vital if Ireland is to enjoy continued economic progress with the benefits it brings to all parts of the country. EirGrid is fully committed to putting in place safe, reliable and affordable infrastructure to support the needs of sustained and balanced economic development and secure energy supply, while also meeting Government targets on renewable energy and climate change. We are grateful to the Chairman and members of the committee for their time and attention and are happy to answer any questions they may have.
