Greg Clark has held talks with Irish officials to try to avoid publishing the government’s plans for a worst-case scenario

Greg Clark, the business secretary, has held urgent talks with officials in Dublin on an emergency agreement to keep the lights on in Northern Ireland after a “no-deal” Brexit.

Downing Street wants to avoid publishing its plans for a worst-case scenario that include importing thousands of generators north of the border.

The electricity industry has operated a single wholesale market across the island of Ireland since 2007 but it is underpinned by European Union law.

Without legal certainty Northern Ireland, a net importer, could be left short of supplies in a chaotic Brexit. Draft contingency plans, first reported by The Times, include the mass importation of generators, some placed on barges, to ensure sufficient capacity.

One senior figure involved in the preparation of the