An overview of the Private Wires Bill 2025

The Private Wires Bill 2025 (“Bill”) represents a significant proposed evolution of the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 (“1999 Act”), creating a bespoke legal framework for the development and regulation of privately owned electricity lines in limited, policy‑defined circumstances. It also introduces, for the first time, a statutory safety and technical regime for internal collector cable systems within generation projects and clarifies the roles of the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment (“Minister”) and the Commission for Regulation of Utilities in overseeing these new forms of infrastructure.

From a policy perspective, the legislation is expressly framed as an enabling measure that sits alongside, rather than displaces, the existing role of ESB Networks and EirGrid in respect of the public transmission and distribution systems. In this article, we consider some of the key features of the Bill. We previously looked at some of the key issues associated with private wire schemes here.

Key Definitions

At the definitional level, the Bill inserts a new concept of a private wire into section 2 of the 1999 Act, alongside a clarified definition of electricity undertaking and a new definition of internal collector cable systems.

A private wire is defined as an electric line owned by a person or entity and used or to be used to carry electricity for the purpose of supply, the construction of which is permitted under a new section 37A or licensed under section 14 of the 1999 Act.

The definition of electricity undertaking is amended to clarify that participants in the private wires scheme are electricity undertakings for regulatory and levy purposes, while remaining distinct from final customers, which facilitates their inclusion within the CRU levy framework and resolves concerns about direct supply to customers.

Internal collector cable systems are defined as the collector system of cables used to consolidate power generated by individual units of a single generation project for the purpose of export via a single grid connection point, thereby drawing a legislative line between such internal systems and both private wires and the public network.

Additional function of the CRU

The Bill expands the statutory functions of the CRU to encompass electrical safety oversight of private wires. Section 9 of the 1999 Act is to be amended by the insertion of a new provision, expressly empowering the CRU to regulate the activities of holders of private wire licences and permissions with respect to safety. This is complemented by a new section 9CA, which obliges the CRU, in consultation with the Minister, to make regulations on the electrical safety of private wires, including the specification of procedures for installation, operation, maintenance, decommissioning and inspection, and permits the appointment of an electricity safety officer to enforce the regime.

The intention is that private wires are built to the same safety standards as the national grid, while ensuring that ESB Networks and EirGrid retain responsibility for the technical and safety management of the public transmission and distribution network. The CRU is required to consult ESB Networks and EirGrid when preparing these regulations so that private wires are functionally compliant with grid electrical, technical and safety standards, and so that private infrastructure can be integrated into national mapping and safety initiatives such as the Dial Before You Dig programme.

Licencing of private wires

A core structural feature of the Bil is the creation of a licensing and permissions architecture for private wires. Section 14 of the 1999 Act is to be amended to introduce a new private wire licence under section 14(1)(p), which is conceived as a licence to construct a single private wire asset, rather than a licence to operate a system in the manner of a transmission or distribution system operator. The accompanying new section 37A then sets out in detail when a private wire licence from the CRU is required, when a lighter‑touch private wire permission suffices, and when local authority authorisation will be the principal mechanism.

Under section 37A, the CRU is empowered to grant or refuse licences for private wires that, when initially constructed, are not connected to the transmission or distribution systems and that facilitate supply in specified circumstances, including where a new source of generation or battery storage connects directly to a customer or another electricity undertaking. The CRU may also grant or refuse a private wire permission, distinct from a licence, for projects where more than one generation or storage technology intends to share a single grid connection, potentially across multiple legal entities, or where a self‑supplying customer wishes to generate onsite and supply a separate customer on a contiguous premises. In parallel, local authorities are given power to authorise the running of electricity lines in public or shared spaces to enable electric vehicle charging for domestic premises, with an obligation to notify ESB Networks of the existence of such wires and to provide the CRU with annual updates on new or additional private wires.

The Bill draws a clear distinction between three categories of private wires, each with a different regulatory touch. Licensed private wires, typically associated with larger scale use cases such as a high‑voltage line connecting a wind farm to a major industrial offtaker, will be subject to a full licensing regime, including fees and tariffs, and must meet both safety and technical standards equivalent to the national grid. Private wire permissions, associated with more limited works such as shared grid connections or contiguous premises self‑supply, are still required to meet safety standards but may benefit from more flexible technical conditions in recognition of their scale and scope. Finally, for certain electric vehicle charging arrangements, particularly on‑street solutions that may involve crossing footpaths or third‑party land, it is envisaged that local authority authorisation, such as a road opening licence, will be the primary instrument, with ESB Networks and the CRU informed rather than directly permitting each installation.

Licences and permissions are not granted as of right, and section 37A establishes substantive criteria that anchor private wires firmly within the wider public interest. Applicants must demonstrate that the private wire will promote the use of renewable, sustainable or alternative forms of energy, taking into account project‑level security of supply, and that the proposal will not interfere with the operation of the national grid, national security of supply, or planned expansion or reinforcement of the grid as committed in regulatory price reviews. All licence and permission holders must comply with safety standards to be set under section 9CA, and licensed private wires must also comply with technical standards specified by the CRU, including standards necessary to ensure compatibility with the transmission or distribution system to the extent required by the licence.

Not considered distribution or transmission activities

Critically, the Bill preserves the legal boundary between private wires and the public networks by exempting private wires from the statutory definitions of transmission and distribution, and by confirming that holders of private wire licences or permissions are not subject to transmission or distribution system operator obligations. This is designed to avoid triggering EU‑level unbundling and related duties for private wire operators, while still allowing the CRU to designate private wires as a class of electricity undertaking for the purposes of the levy order under Schedule 1 of the 1999 Act, thereby permitting a tailored charging methodology. The CRU may consult ESB Networks and EirGrid when assessing applications, both to test compliance with the grid interaction criteria and to integrate private wires into national electricity system mapping.

The Bill also deliberately withholds certain public law powers from private wire developers and introduces carefully constrained step‑in rights for ESB Networks. Holders of private wire licences are expressly denied wayleave and compulsory purchase order powers, reflecting policy concerns about extending compulsory acquisition rights to private actors whose assets sit outside the core public network. The CRU is also empowered, in defined circumstances, to grant ESB Networks a limited step‑in right to take charge of a private wire for the purposes of decommissioning and removal in the public interest where the original licence holder is unable to decommission or remove the wire, for example following bankruptcy or abandonment. In addition, on application by ESB Networks, and where agreed by the CRU and EirGrid, a further limited step‑in right may be exercised to transfer ownership of a private wire to ESB Networks where that is considered beneficial to the operation and development of the national grid, with any transfer potentially subject to compensation.

Statutory review

In recognition of the dynamic nature of electricity system development and emerging concepts such as green energy industrial parks and renewable energy communities, the Bill incorporates a statutory review mechanism. The Minister is required, after consultation with the CRU, to carry out a review of the legislation not later than ten years after it comes into force, with scope for earlier review if necessary. This reflects a deliberate policy choice to begin with four defined private wires use cases, as set out in the underpinning policy statement, while leaving open the possibility of further liberalisation where that would support Ireland’s renewable energy and decarbonisation objectives.

Internal Collector Cable Systems

The treatment of internal collector cable systems is intentionally sequenced behind the private wires regime. The new section 9CB, which provides for CRU regulations on safety and technical standards for such systems, is to commence at a later date than the rest of the Bill so that the private wires framework can be established in the first instance. In the interim, the Scheme recognises that wind and solar projects often include lengthy internal cable networks that may cross roads and third‑party lands, and that clear, publicly adopted standards and inspection mechanisms are required for these systems given their growing prevalence and potential safety implications.

Funding of the CRU

Finally, the Bill addresses the pragmatic question of how the CRU will fund the development of the new private wires regime prior to the emergence of sufficient levy‑paying participants. The Bill empowers the Minister to provide assistance, including financial assistance, to the CRU on such conditions as the Minister considers appropriate in relation to the development of the private wires regime. This acknowledges that the CRU is ordinarily funded through levy orders on regulated undertakings and that, absent this provision, the regulator would have limited ability to resource the significant upfront work required to design, consult on and implement the new regulatory framework.

Conclusion

Taken together, the Private Wires Bill 2025 proposes a contained but important liberalisation of electricity line ownership in Ireland within a tightly defined regulatory perimeter. It opens a pathway for private wire solutions to facilitate renewable integration, large load connections and innovative energy park models, while embedding strong safety, technical and public interest safeguards and preserving the central role of ESB Networks and EirGrid in the operation and development of the national grid.