Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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128. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform regarding the €3.5 billion allocation for EirGrid and ESB in the NDP review, if any parameters were put in place regarding the type of projects the funding should be targeted towards. [55870/25]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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Responsibility for the development and operation of the national electricity grid rests with EirGrid, as Transmission System Operator, and ESB Networks, as Distribution System Operator. Both entities are overseen by the independent regulator, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU).

The CRU approve price reviews on a five yearly basis. These set out the operating and investment programmes for the electricity network and determines the revenues that the network companies can recover from electricity customers through network tariffs. In October 2024, ESB Networks and EirGrid, submitted their proposals to the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) for expenditure for the five-year price review period 2026-2030 (PR6). These proposals targeted a more than three-fold increase in investment over 2026 - 2030 than made over the period 2021 – 2025.

CRU published their Draft Determination in early July 2025. CRU’s draft PR6 determination proposes a ‘high case’ overall network expenditure programme of €18.1 billion over the period 2026-2030, which includes a baseline allowance of €14.1 billion with additional flexible allowances of €4 billion.

The scale of the increase in investment means that both companies need financial support to deliver their ambitious infrastructure investment programmes. As part of the NDP Review, Government agreed to the provision of up to €3.5 billion in additional equity to support investment in electricity grid infrastructure over 2026-2030, of which €2 billion is for EirGrid to support the financing of their offshore investment plan and €1.5 billion is for ESB to support their investment in the onshore grid. The requirement to use the additional equity for investment in electricity network infrastructure only will be further specified in an updated shareholder letter of expectations which will be issued to both companies.

The provision of equity will allow both EirGrid and ESB to raise funds to deliver on their network plans. These investment levels are necessary to deliver key priorities in the Programme for Government across housing, competitiveness, security of supply and renewable energy.