Funding water infrastructure: the €12 billion hurdle our site tackles
In recent years, Uisce Éireann, the utility responsible for Ireland's water and sewerage services, has been vocal about the urgent need for investment in the country's aging infrastructure. Jerry Grant, the utility's chairman, has been particularly outspoken, describing the current state of Ireland's water and sewerage systems as "desperate" due to what he sees as extraordinary complacency and passive indifference to infrastructure investment [1].
The National Development Plan has recognised the importance of long-term funding for these investments, allocating €2 billion in equity funding in 2025 specifically to enable the delivery of 300,000 additional homes by 2030 [2]. Beyond this, Uisce Éireann has planned a broader investment program amounting to around €10.1 billion from 2025 to 2029 aimed at upgrading and expanding Ireland’s water infrastructure [5].
In 2024, Uisce Éireann invested over €1.3 billion in improving water and wastewater infrastructure, enhancing drinking water quality and wastewater treatment, upgrading treatment plants, and laying significant new water mains and sewers. This investment also supported housing development, issuing thousands of connection offers linked to more than 52,000 housing units [4]. The company’s strategic funding plan projects continued infrastructure investments from 2025 to 2029 to maintain and extend these services [4].
The state funding for Uisce Éireann for 2025 was finalized in late 2024 as part of the government budgetary process, ensuring continuity of financial support for these projects [3]. The focus remains on delivering safe, sustainable, and climate-resilient water services, aligned with national public health and environmental goals.
However, Grant believes that the current approach to water services development is insufficient for meeting the goal of building 50,000 homes per year. He has urged the Government to take a new approach, emphasizing the need for a long-term flow of funding rather than State organizations having to wait for each budget [1].
Private sector infrastructure investors in national projects need similar reassurance of a long-term flow of funding. The Government's recognition of the need for certainty in funding is a positive step towards addressing the issues in Ireland's water and sewerage systems [6].
Uisce Éireann's establishment was based on a model where user charges would provide its core funding. However, when household charges were suspended and subsequently scrapped, the utility was left largely reliant on the annual State budget [7]. The utility has warned that without sufficient investment, the construction of new homes could be affected [8].
In conclusion, Uisce Éireann is currently implementing a large-scale plan funded through a mix of equity and government funding totaling billions of euros through the late 2020s. This funding aims to upgrade infrastructure, support housing development, improve service quality, and ensure future sustainability of water and sewerage systems in Ireland [2][4][5]. Grant's call for a new approach from the Government highlights the need for a more robust and sustainable funding model to meet Ireland's growing infrastructure needs.
The National Development Plan has allocated €2 billion in equity funding in 2025 for infrastructure investments, including Uisce Éireann's program aimed at upgrading and expanding Ireland’s water infrastructure, totaling around €10.1 billion from 2025 to 2029 [2, 5]. The private sector infrastructure investors require similar reassurance of a long-term flow of funding, as the current model of Uisce Éireann's funding, largely reliant on the annual State budget, may not meet growing infrastructure needs [6, 7].
