Written answers

Tuesday, 23 September 2014

Department of Environment, Community and Local Government

Irish Water Expenditure

Photo of Aengus Ó SnodaighAengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

494. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the amount of the €539 million loan from the National Pensions Reserve Fund to Uisce Éireann that has been spent to date. [35470/14]

Photo of Aengus Ó SnodaighAengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

497. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the estimated total capital investment spend on water and sewerage services in 2015; and if he will provide a breakdown identifying each funding source. [35473/14]

Photo of Aengus Ó SnodaighAengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

498. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the amount it will cost to provide water and sewerage services in 2015; and the anticipated revenue to be raised respectively through domestic household charges, non-domestic charges and other streams. [35474/14]

Photo of Alan KellyAlan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 494, 497 and 498 together.

The establishment of Irish Water is an integral component of the Government’s water sector reform strategy and involves major organisational change, an entirely new funding structure governed by economic regulation, the introduction of domestic water charges based on usage and the roll-out of a national domestic metering programme. Bord Gáis Éireann (BGE) had responsibility for most of the deliverables under the Government water sector reform implementation strategy including the establishment of a fully functioning integrated public water utility and the roll-out of the national domestic water metering programme (the estimated cost of the metering programme is €539m excluding VAT). Some €250m in loan finance has been advanced to Irish Water to date by the National Pensions Reserve Fund in order to finance this expenditure.

The Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) has recently reviewed the Irish Water submission in relation to its costs over the regulatory review period, which runs from 1 October 2014 to the end of 2016, to ensure that only efficient costs are recovered from customers. This will result in an allowed revenue for Irish Water of €2,078million over the period. Irish Water has published its proposed Capital Investment Plan 2014-2016 and this is available online at

Irish Water will fund its activities with revenue from a number of sources including domestic and non-domestic water charges, Government subvention, commercial borrowing and equity investment. Domestic water charges will commence with effect from 1 October 2014 and Irish Water will issue the first bills to domestic customers from January 2015. The approach to charging was outlined by Irish Water in their Water Charges Plan (WCP) submitted to the CER in line with the provisions of the Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013. 

As part of the CER’s recent consultation process on the Irish Water WCP it proposed a range of domestic tariffs which would result in an average annual charge of €238 per household. The amount billed to domestic customers for the year 2015 based on this charging structure would be in the order of €300 million and the amount billed to non-domestic customers would be some €230 million.

The CER is currently reviewing submissions received during the consultation and a final determination on water charges will be made by the CER later this month.  Full details of the CER public consultation are available on .

Irish Water has confirmed to my Department that it has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. The team can be contacted via email to

or by telephone on 1890 278 278.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.