Water infrastructure and NDP 2025
In late July 2025, the Government published its latest iteration of the National Development Plan (NDP). As per its 2018 and 2021 predecessors, water infrastructure remains a major focus of the 2025 NDP, alongside critical energy and transport infrastructure, as enablers of housing delivery.
Programme for Government 2025 (PfG), Securing Our Future, emphasises the need to enhance infrastructure delivery, and prioritised an early review of the NDP. The PfG also determined that the updated NDP prioritised infrastructure investment in housing, energy, water, and transport.
The core ambition of the updated NDP is delivering the enabling infrastructure to drive the delivery of 300,000 new houses by the end of 2030 and consolidating economic competitiveness.
Between 29 May and 26 June 2025, a public consultation on the NDP review attracted 185 responses, of which 36 per cent indicated that the water sector should be a priority sector for additional investment.
For the five-year period from 2026 to 2030, a total of €36 billion of Exchequer voted capital expenditure has been allocated to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, of which €7.7 billion is earmarked for water.
On top of total Exchequer allocations (€202.4 billion), a further €10 billion in equity funding and fund releases has been provided for the period from 2026 to 2030. Of this, 21 per cent or €2 billion is being provided to Uisce Éireann in 2025 “to enable the delivery of 300,000 additional homes to 2030”. And to meet regulatory requirements.
A further €2.5 billion in non-voted funding has been allocated to specifically support the delivery of large-scale water infrastructure projects in the same timeframe, “to build essential capacity for growth and increase the resilience and sustainability of water supply”. In total, therefore, an additional €4.5 billion of non-voted funding will be made available to Uisce Éireann.
The provision made for water infrastructure in the NDP is primarily intended to support the Uisce Éireann Strategic Funding Plan.
The updated NDP affirms: “These funds are available and ready for drawdown when required. Across all sources, including the NDP investment, a total of €12 billion has been released and earmarked specifically for critical water infrastructure investment.”
Speaking with eolas Magazine, Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation Jack Chambers TD says: “When it comes to water infrastructure, we have provided multiyear funding to Irish Water [Uisce Éireann] to drive delivery in terms of water and wastewater infrastructure. That has been a €2 billion equity injection this year [2025].
“We have set aside €2.5 billion for the Great Dublin Drainage (GDD) Scheme and the Water Supply Project for the Eastern and Midlands Region. Again, projects that are now being earmarked to give certainty to the market around the pipeline and the priority in terms of delivery, but also to allow Irish Water [Uisce Éireann] to advance other infrastructure that is not impacted by megaprojects and the €7.5 billion over a five-year period now in Exchequer funding to Irish Water [Uisce Éireann]. So, the total funding combined is €12 billion.”
Appearing before the Joint Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery in late May 2025, Uisce Éireann CEO Niall Gleeson stated: “For 2025 to 2029, our strategic funding plan sets out a funding requirement €10.3 billion of investment for capital infrastructure and assets. However, sustained ongoing investment will be required for many decades to offset the years of underinvestment in water services.”
Referencing the Government’s new housing target of 303,000 new units by the end of 2030, Gleeson added: “We estimate that to support Government in realising this new proposed target, an additional ring-fenced funding stream of €2 billion will be required between 2025 and 2030 to deliver the water services capacity needed for housing growth across the country.”
Uisce Éireann’s total ‘ask’ of the updated NDP, therefore, was €12.3 billion over five years. With this commitment, Gleeson asserted that “the supply chain will stick with us”.
Ultimately, the water sector will receive a total capital investment of €12.2 billion from 2026 to 2030, only slightly less than it advocated for.
Asked for its reaction to the updated NDP, Uisce Éireann’s response welcomes the Government’s “renewed commitment to water infrastructure investment”.
“This prioritisation of water infrastructure reflects the critical role that resilient water services play in enabling sustainable growth, supporting housing delivery and protecting the environment across Ireland,” it says, adding: “As Ireland plans for a growing population and increasing housing demand, Uisce Éireann is focused on delivering the water and wastewater infrastructure that will underpin this growth.
“Looking ahead, key national projects such as the GDD scheme and the Water Supply Project, Eastern and Midlands Region will be central to meeting long-term demand and ensuring environmental sustainability. These transformative investments will provide the capacity and resilience needed to support housing, economic development, and climate adaptation in the decades to come. The commitment of ringfenced funding for these projects in the NDP is to be greatly welcomed.
“We are looking forward to engaging with government and state agencies to deliver on our ambitious targets, and to plan, procure, and deliver critical water infrastructure efficiently at scale. We will be working with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage on the next steps in relation to funding timelines.
“Uisce Éireann remains committed to delivering safe, climate-resilient, and future-proofed water services that support Ireland’s social, environmental, and economic goals.”
