81. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment in light of his recent statement that no household has not been connected to the network due to a data centre (details supplied), if he is also satisfied that no households have been delayed in connecting to the electricity network because of data centres. [53105/26]

As set out in the Programme for Government, investing in the electricity grid is a priority for Government. The CRU Price Review 6 (PR6) decision will see up to €18.9 billion invested in our electricity system over the coming 5 years, the largest ever electricity grid investment. This will enable the delivery of major upgrades and developments to the electricity network, facilitating the connection up to 300,000 new homes by 2030 and enabling heat and transport electrification, while driving industrial and economic growth. Housing developments continue to be connected to the electricity network, and it has not been the case that other connections including enterprise connections have prevented this.

In Ireland, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) is responsible for grid connection policy. The CRU is an independent regulator, accountable to a Committee of the Oireachtas and not to me as Minister. The management of connections to the electricity grid is the responsibility of ESB Networks and EirGrid under rules determined by the CRU. ESB Networks and EirGrid are independent of me as Minister in the exercise of their respective functions.

The pathway to connection to the electricity grid is dependent on the nature and scale of the project seeking connection. The connection policy for data centres is the CRU’s ‘Large Energy Users Connection Policy’. The policy sets out a pathway for connection for data centres while addressing concerns in relation to system constraints and promoting renewable energy targets. Data centres requesting connection to the electricity grid will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis against strict assessment criteria.

ESB Networks is responsible for domestic connections. Connection applications are dealt with on sequential first come first served basis. With growing demand across all sectors and long lead times for infrastructure, ESB Networks are advising developers to provide as much notice of their requirements as possible.

My Department is either leading on or part of taskforces, including the Accelerating Infrastructure Taskforce, which are critical to enabling delivery of grid infrastructure. Cross Government work is ongoing to accelerate critical infrastructure including implementation of the Accelerating Infrastructure Action Plan and the 30, time bound, measures to remove barriers to infrastructure delivery. Implementation of these measures along with the work of the taskforces will ensure that EirGrid and ESB Networks are placed in the best position to deliver PR6 for the country.

The Deputy may wish to engage directly with ESB Networks, EirGrid and the CRU who have respective contact email addresses for Deputies to raise matters of concern (oireachtas@esb.ie, oireachtas@eirgrid.com, oireachtas@cru.ie).