Profits at State-owned ESB Group rose in the first six months of the year and the company increased capital investment in its infrastructure as it worked towards reducing its carbon emissions.

The group said its pretax profit was €445.6 million for the first half of 2026, up from €351.6 million in the same period a year earlier.

Last year saw significant damage from Storm Éowyn push additional costs onto the networks’ businesses, while rising energy costs from the ongoing Middle East conflict that began earlier this year have led to a €22 million increase in profits in the generation trading business.

ESB Group, which employs more than 10,000 people, has spent almost €1.5 billion in capital investment for its energy infrastructure projects, a 16 per cent rise on 2025.

That includes more than €900 million in the electricity network infrastructure across the island, and almost €500 million in electricity generation, with the majority in new renewable energy projects in onshore, offshore and solar technologies.

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/2026/09/12/esb-flags-risk-of-state-actor-attacks-on-assets-following-incidents-in-europe/

A further €20 billion in investment is planned by 2030 to strengthen the electricity system to support growth in housing, the economy and technology developments, in line with the Government’s National Development Plan.

“We are currently carrying out the biggest ever investment in Ireland’s electricity infrastructure, which will support the delivery of more homes and economic progress across the country and to ultimately achieve our net zero carbon emissions targets,” said Paul Stapleton, ESB’s chief financial officer. “An investment of this nature and magnitude requires a solid financial footing, and these results underline ESB’s continued robust performance.”

Although the group said Electric Ireland’s hedging strategy mitigated the impact of higher prices for the initial months of the crisis, it was “necessary” to increase electricity and gas prices from July 2026.

Stapleton noted that ongoing volatility in global markets, saying it underlined the importance of reducing Ireland’s dependency on imported oil and gas.