Cable ties us to live well with our neighbours

No matter that the row was swiftly being defused yesterday. Once uttered, such coercive words can never be unsaid. In the heat of a minor skirmish over fish, these islands’ plans to draw more electricity via the French grid look rather risky.

Diplomatically, the effects of the words from Maritime Minister Annick Girardin will be smoothed over. The damage to confidence will not.

This is an uncomfortable moment for the islands, despite positive efforts taking place behind the scenes in developing workable 'entente cordiale'.

Pre-Brexit, linking to the nearest large neighbour made sense. Today, those who say Guernsey should develop its own potential for renewables from wind and tide feel vindicated.

That could also play to Economic Development’s vision to invest in ‘new and innovative economic opportunities'. It might also give fresh life to previously announced proposals to create a tidal barrage at Belle Greve Bay.

But despite support for on-island renewables, none of this is likely to happen. Guernsey’s energy policies are too well developed to respond to what are hopefully one-off, heat-of-the-moment threats.

More significantly, energy consultant Kathryn Porter advised in 2019 that the opportunity in large-scale renewables lay off-island.

With no equivalent domestic industry of its own, ‘it is likely that importing electricity would be more cost effective than importing turbines,’ she said. Linking to the UK via Alderney’s Fab link was also ruled out on technical and cost grounds.

Instead, new business models could be developed on the retail side – transitioning from oil would provide opportunities for service providers to bundle combinations of heating systems, retrofit efficiency measures, micro-generation, storage, electric vehicle charging and load optimisation along with the electricity itself.

In short, Guernsey cannot choose its neighbours, it has to live with them.