16th June 2026, Dublin: Energy Storage Ireland (ESI) has welcomed a landmark decision by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) to remove unfair grid charges on battery energy storage, in a move that received near-unanimous backing from the energy industry during public consultation.
Under the current regime, battery storage projects are charged Demand Transmission Use of System (D-TUoS) fees of up to €30 per megawatt-hour every time they import electricity to charge, treating storage as if it were a large energy user rather than a source of flexibility helping to support the electricity grid. From 1 October 2026, the CRU has confirmed that standalone battery storage units, and those co-located with other generation, will instead pay Generation Transmission Use of System (G-TUoS) charges, consistent with the treatment of wind and solar farms.
The CRU received 17 responses to its consultation on the proposed change, with all but one respondent explicitly voicing support. No respondent indicated opposition to the reform.
Bobby Smith, Director of ESI, said: “This decision corrects a longstanding anomaly that has penalised battery storage for doing exactly what Ireland’s electricity system needs it to do. The near-unanimous support this reform received from across the energy industry speaks for itself, this was a long overdue and uncontroversial fix.
“The benefits for Irish consumers are significant and wide-ranging. This reform will put downward pressure on electricity prices, as storage can now store electricity when supply is abundant and release it during times of higher prices. It will reduce balancing costs, curtailment and redispatch on the grid, and support the increased integration of indigenous renewable energy, along with the emissions reductions that come with it.
“It will also create stronger incentives to locate storage where it can reduce the need for new network reinforcement, encourage greater use of our existing grid assets without the need for additional capital investment, and unlock further investment in energy storage to provide system services that reduce the need for network reinforcement altogether.
“Taken together, this is a genuinely consumer-focused reform, one that ESI has been advocating for several years and we commend the CRU for progressing it.”
The decision builds on revised regulatory arrangements introduced last year governing scheduling and dispatch in the Single Electricity Market (SEM), which enabled active participation by energy storage units in the all-island wholesale energy market for the first time.
ESI said that combined with this reform, and ongoing work to procure Long Duration Energy Storage (LDES), these measures will further unlock the benefits of energy storage for Irish consumers.
Read the CRU’s decision in full here.