With the launch of our strategy ‘Driven to Make a Difference: Net Zero by 2040’ in early 2022, ESB committed to an ambitious goal: achieve net zero carbon emissions across our business by 2040. The strategy set a clear direction for action to address climate change by decarbonising the electricity we generate, delivering resilient infrastructure, and empowering our customers to reach net zero in their own lives.
Strong progress towards net zero
In the four or so years since, we have made significant progress. We have delivered a further 28% reduction in generation emissions, grown our renewables and renewable-enabling portfolio by over 50%, and reached over 10GW of renewable power now connected to our electricity networks.
Since 2022, we have made capital investment in critical energy infrastructure of over €8.5 billion. Our networks businesses have connected over 189,000 new homes and businesses, and we have surpassed 2 million smart meters installed across Ireland. Plus, we have helped customers to adopt low-carbon technologies through a range of services and infrastructure – such as a public charging network in Ireland and the UK with capacity to charge 1,850 EVs simultaneously.
An evolving environment
Over those same four years, however, the environment we operate in has continued to evolve. While the need to act on climate remains as important as ever, there have been important changes in the landscape for renewables development and deployment: a longer timeline for the rollout of offshore wind in Ireland, for example, and a growing need for services to integrate variable renewables, microgeneration or decarbonised heat – all of which bring new challenges and opportunities.
At the same time, a changing geopolitical and economic climate has created new pressures for governments and society. Over and above its role in cutting emissions, clean homegrown electricity is now also seen as essential to energy security and affordability, as it helps end reliance on imported fossil fuels.
And as Ireland’s population and economy continue to grow, our electricity infrastructure is increasingly recognised as a critical driver of national and regional development. This is reflected in the major network capital investment programmes planned under Price Review 6 (PR6) in Ireland and Regulatory Period 7 (RP7) in Northern Ireland between now and the end of the decade – investment that will also strengthen the resilience of grids that have come under increasing strain from extreme weather events such as Storm Éowyn in 2025.
Strategy review: delivery in focus
Against this backdrop, ESB has undertaken a comprehensive review of our strategy to ensure it can meet these new challenges. The core elements remain in place, and we remain firm in our commitment to reach net zero by 2040. This revised strategy places even greater emphasis on ESB’s role as a provider of critical national infrastructure. It calls out ‘Delivery Focus’ as a key enabler of our 2040 ambition, underlining our drive to deliver safely and innovatively at scale and pace to support national climate, social and economic goals.
The three key strategic objectives – our priorities – remain unchanged. First, we are working to decarbonise electricity generation by developing and connecting low-carbon technologies for a secure net zero system by 2040. Second, we are committed to providing resilient infrastructure and a reliable electricity system for a growing economy. And third, we will continue to empower, enable and support customers and communities towards an affordable and clean energy future.
To ensure transparency and accountability as we deliver our strategy, we have developed a set of strategic performance indicators and targets – including interim targets for 2035 – to track our progress.
Underpinning these priorities are five enablers, which are essential to achieving our objectives: a clear focus on delivery; harnessing digital, data and responsible AI; growing the financial performance and strength required to deliver; embedding sustainability and positive social impact wherever we operate; and inspiring our people to grow and deliver in line with our values of being courageous, caring, trusted and driven.
This latest review of our strategy sets out a clear path for us to achieve our 2040 ambition – to meet the challenges of a changing environment and deliver what’s needed to create and connect sustainable, reliable and affordable electricity for the customers and communities we serve.
Find out more about our updated strategy.