I propose to take Questions Nos. 102 and 103 together.
My Department engaged in significant preparatory work in advance of Storm Amy last week including attending technical briefings hosted by the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management (NDFEM). These briefings included significant inputs from Met Eireann on the arrival of Storm Amy and the warnings that would come into play which assisted agencies in their preparedness.
Officials in my Department were in regular contact with their counterparts in ESB Networks (ESB-N) and EirGrid prior to the storm and throughout the weekend. Officials attended sub-groups hosted by the NDFEM that dealt with the humanitarian response and the impacts on all critical infrastructure.
I am advised that ESB-N entered preparedness mode in advance of Storm Amy and mobilised repair crews and contract partners to the areas that were expected to be most impacted. ESB-N developed and issued Public Safety Messages ahead of the arrival of Storm Amy, alongside Local Authorities and State Agencies. There was significant engagement between these parties to identify critical sites for urgent repairs and ensure timely access.
The information requested in relation to ESB is an operational matter for ESB and as such the Deputy may wish to contact ESB directly. ESB has a dedicated email address for Oireachtas members which is Oireachtas@esb.ie.
With regard to the safeguarding of electricity supply in coastal and rural areas, following Storm Éowyn, I asked ESB-N to prepare as a priority a Winter 2025 Resilience Plan to enhance the resilience of the grid in the most vulnerable locations for the upcoming winter. This has been progressing since April and the actions include:
ESB-N has progressed remedial works post Storm Éowyn, needed to refurbish the network.
ESB-N continues to work with Coillte and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to identify segments of the network at highest future risk. Timber harvesters have been procured and during the summer began to cut timber according to this prioritisation.
Emergency stocks of spare parts and materials are being replenished.
Staffing levels and available contractor resources are being increased through provision of targeted training programmes. In addition, my Department has progressed the issue of permits for skilled workers from outside the EU to advance urgent forestry work.
ESB-N is leading a working group at EU level to establish formal arrangements for mutual aid during extreme weather events.
ESB-N is also increasing the number of access officers who manage engagement with landowners on forestry work. My Department is preparing legislation to enhance ESB-N’s powers to manage vegetation, place the dimensions and conditions of corridors through forestry on a statutory footing, and establish principles for the compensation of affected landowners. The Government approved the Heads of this Bill in July and work on advancing the legislation continues.
I should also highlight that significant investment in the electricity grid which supports overall resilience is ongoing. The National Development Plan will provide for the provision of up to €3.5 billion in additional equity to support an unprecedented investment in electricity grid infrastructure over 2026 – 2030. €2 billion will be provided to EirGrid and €1.5 billion to ESB.
Work has commenced on Price Review 6 (PR6) which will see the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) sanction the investment in the grid to 2030. The CRU published their draft determination on PR6 on 3 July for public consultation, which closed 11 September. The CRU are proposing to approve an investment of up to €18.08 billion in our electricity system with a €14.1 billion baseline investment guaranteed over the period 2026-2030. PR6 will assist Ireland in maintaining a reliable and resilient electricity network to meet the needs of customers and society.
The impact of recent storms, most notably Storm Éowyn which caused major disruption across Ireland in January 2025, highlights the need for investment to ensure networks are resilient to climate change and these more frequent adverse weather events. To deal with the disruptive events of storms and long-term impacts of climate change, as part of PR6, ESB Networks are planning to implement a strategic approach to asset management to ensure that the investments are future-proofed and resilient.
For ESB-N no changes have been made to the allowances proposed following consideration of the original request in the Business Plan submission provided by the DSO to the CRU in November 2024. However, CRU’s analysis indicates that the proposed allowances include €0.89bn of investment to improve storm resilience, building on the Winter 2025 Grid Resilience Plan to implement lessons learned from Storm Éowyn. This is expected to include adopting robust approaches to network planning, customer service, vulnerable customer protection, organisational resilience and storm damage repair. Furthermore, should any additional specific information become available in the intervening period, then this will be considered as part of the Final Determination.
We know from Storm Éowyn that there is need for a range of supports to assist communities who are impacted the most. The Review of the response to Storm Éowyn, being led by the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage will look at the humanitarian response and recommendations arising from that Review are expected to come before Government in the next few weeks.
