ESB worker-shareholders yesterday criticised the State power company’s decision last year to pay a €300 million subsidy to ease domestic electricity price increases.

After making over €400 million in profits in 2007, the ESB last year pledged to give a €300 million subsidy against what were rising household electricity prices in 2008.

At the company’s annual general meeting yesterday, the company’s employee share option scheme (Esop), which owns over 14 per cent of the company, argued that the move damaged the company’s value and said that had it not given the money to the market, it would have kept at least €200 million.

“Following it, the company is still not given the ability to compete, indeed the regulatory model has allowed our competitors to claim an increase in their customers of 300,000 accounts – all presumably lost to our company,” the Esop’s statement said.

The group is also concerned at moves to transfer the national grid – the electricity transmission network – from the ESB’s ownership to another State agency, Eirgrid, which currently manages it.

The Government originally proposed the move in 2007 but, following opposition from unions and the Esop, postponed any decision pending the outcome of a consultation process.

Former Irish National Petroleum Corporation chief executive Fergus Cahill began chairing that process a number of weeks ago.

However, the unions and the Esop withdrew, arguing that the decision to transfer the network was already made, and that the consultation was aimed at finding the best way to carry it out.

The Esop’s members are concerned at the impact such a move would have on the company’s value, and have argued consistently that EU law does not oblige the Republic to take such a step.

The Esop warned that splitting up the ESB would handicap the company when the Irish and British electricity markets are interconnected and opened up to competition.