THE Irish state-owned company which operates the electricity grid on the island of Ireland has announced a surge in profits during 2021.
EirGrid reported annual revenues for the year to September 30 2021 of €737.4m (£625m), seven per cent higher than the previous year.
Profit before tax was up 190 per cent from €14m (£11.9m) to €40.7m (£34.5m).
EirGrid said the substantial increase was mainly due to “exceptionally low wind conditions” during the year, which meant associated costs were significantly below the regulatory revenue allowance.
It said that excluding the impact of over recoveries, it estimates underlying operating profit for 2021 was €22.1m (£18.75m).
EirGrid said the related over-recovery will be returned to customers through a reduction in tariffs in future years.
The state-owned firm is proposing to pay a dividend of €4m (£3.4m) to the Irish Government for 2021, unchanged from last year.
Among the milestones it listed for the reporting period, EirGrid said the ‘East West Interconnector’, which links the island of Ireland network with Britain, had successfully transitioned to post-Brexit energy market arrangements, stating that its availability during the year was 98 per cent.
Group chair Brendan Tuohy said: “This was a very important year for the group in the execution of our strategy.”
He said EirGrid is at the mid-point in its group strategy, which he said is shaped by two factors: climate change and the required transformation of the electricity sector, as it works toward a target of 80 per cent of electricity from renewable sources by 2030.
“Ireland is on the cusp of the emergence of a new sector in offshore wind,” he said. “A sector that will be a real powerhouse in helping deliver our 2030 targets, but also in the longer term has the potential to transform the island economy if the vast resources off the west coast can be harnessed in an efficient manner in the decades to come.”
