The Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU), Ireland’s independent energy and water regulator,  has published its Final Determination for Revenue Control 4 (RC4) which sets the allowed expenditures and associated revenues for Uisce Éireann for the period 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2029.

The CRU has approved a substantial investment programme totalling €13.6 billion over the five years, comprising €8.56 billion in capital expenditure and €5.06 billion in operational expenditure. This represents a step change in investment compared to the previous revenue control.

The investment will enable Uisce Éireann to deliver critical upgrades to Ireland’s water and wastewater infrastructure, supporting population and economic growth, housing delivery, high-quality drinking water, and environmental compliance.

The RC4 investment will deliver a range of significant benefits for consumers including:

• New and upgraded treatment plants, including 163 water and 61 wastewater treatment plants.
• Network rehabilitation, including 663km of water mains and 34km of sewers.
• Works completed at 33 sites to facilitate removal from the EPA’s Remedial Action List, at 23 sites to facilitate removal from the Priority Urban Area Action List, and at 25 sites to address significant pressure in the River Basin Management Plan (2022-2027).
• Connections for new housing developments, to support Government housing objectives.
• Additional treatment capacity - 43 Mega Litres per Day (MLD) additional water treatment and expanded capacity at 57 wastewater treatment plants.
• Enhanced CRU monitoring and reporting of Uisce Éireann’s performance through 39 Delivery Obligations and 34 performance incentives

The RC4 Final Determination establishes a comprehensive Agile Investment and Monitoring Framework to strengthen delivery, transparency and accountability. This framework includes enhanced performance monitoring and reporting across investment delivery, operational performance, and customer and environmental outcomes. It also introduces a suite of regulatory mechanisms to manage uncertainty. Together, these measures support more responsive investment, while ensuring that funding is clearly linked to delivery and outcomes.

Announcing the determination, the CRU said the RC4 Regulatory Framework reflects both the significant increase in approved expenditure and allowed revenue, and the scale of the delivery challenge. This comes as Uisce Éireann completes its transition to a fully integrated national public utility.

The RC4 Final Determination supports national and EU policy objectives, including the efficient delivery of housing capacity, and compliance with the Drinking Water Directive and the Urban Wastewater Directive.

Uisce Éireann welcomes Irish regulator’s €13.6 billion final determination

Uisce Éireann (formerly Irish Water) has welcomed the Irish regulator’s €13.6 billion final determination. The state-owned utility which is owned by the Irish Government and Ervia. operates, upgrades and invests in Ireland's water and wastewater systems.

Uisce Éireann has set out a comprehensive programme of projects, giving clear visibility of planned works across all 26 counties, demonstrating how the investment will translate into delivery.

Justin Johnston, Uisce Éireann’s Director of Strategy, Resilience and Regulation, said:

“We welcome the CRU’s determination, which provides a clear and robust framework for the delivery of water services over the next four years. It sets an ambitious agenda for Uisce Éireann in terms of performance, efficiency and accountability."

“Our focus now is on delivery—progressing critical infrastructure, managing our operational and capital expenditure responsibly and efficiently, and meeting the targets set by our regulator.”

Sean Laffey, Uisce Éireann’s Director of Asset Management, commented:

“This investment will see hundreds of projects being delivered, from water and wastewater treatment and network upgrades to leakage reduction and improvements in service resilience."

“Critically, it will support housing delivery by enabling new connections and addressing infrastructure constraints in key growth areas. Today's announcement also allows Uisce Éireann to continue to move projects through planning, construction and into operation, while ensuring that investment is translated into tangible improvements in services for customers and communities."

“Communities across the country will see further evidence of projects being advanced, as we work to increase capacity, improve reliability and meet our environmental obligations.”

Major national infrastructure projects, including the Water Supply Project Eastern and Midlands Region and the Greater Dublin Drainage Project, will form a key part of the overall delivery, addressing capacity constraints in areas under the greatest pressure.

While the RC4 €13.6 billion determination provides the baseline for delivery, Uisce Éireann will also bring forward further proposals and projects later this year utilising additional National Development Plan funding aimed at accelerating housing delivery, within the regulatory mechanisms.