- Almost half of Irish infrastructure leaders identify natural disasters and extreme weather as a leading threat
- Cybersecurity and incident response emerge as the highest priority for critical infrastructure investment and action
- Environmental approvals and budgetary constraints identified as leading barriers to delivery
Almost half (48%) of Irish government and private infrastructure leaders identify natural disasters and extreme weather events as one of the biggest threats to infrastructure resilience over the next three years, according to Deloitte’s Future of Infrastructure Survey. This compares with 56% of respondents globally.
Urbanisation and population growth emerged as the most frequently selected threat in Ireland, cited by 55% of Irish respondents compared with 48% of respondents globally. The finding points to the importance of ensuring that essential services and infrastructure keep pace with Ireland’s continued development and the growth of its urban areas.
Cyberattacks, ageing infrastructure and limited budgets affecting maintenance and retrofitting were each identified as a leading threat by 40% of Irish respondents, making them the joint third most frequently selected threats in Ireland. The comparable global figures were 39%, 36% and 38%, respectively.
When asked about the highest priorities for critical infrastructure investment or action in their locality, almost two-thirds (65%) of Irish infrastructure leaders selected strengthening cybersecurity and incident response, making it the standout priority. This compares with 60% of respondents globally.
The Deloitte Future of Infrastructure Survey gathered the views of close to 1,000 infrastructure professionals across government, private companies and not-for-profit organisations in 21 countries. The Irish findings are based on responses from 50 infrastructure professionals, 40 of whom work in government organisations.
TECHNOLOGY AMBITION SOARS BUT IMPLEMENTATION LAGS
The survey data also finds that Irish infrastructure leaders expect significant technology-driven transformation across their infrastructure systems over the next three years. More than four-in-five (82%) expect demand for smart, connected, and resilient urban infrastructure to increase, compared with 69% of respondents globally.
Nearly three-in-five (59%) of Irish infrastructure leaders expect increased demand for multi-modal transportation options, compared with 45% globally, placing Ireland in the top 5 countries globally. Close to all (96%) expect the government's priority for electric vehicles and public charging infrastructure to increase, compared with 82% of respondents globally.
Stephen Prendiville, Partner, Infrastructure, Transport & Regional Government Lead at Deloitte Ireland, said:
"Despite these expectations from Irish infrastructure leaders, implementation of said technologies is progressing more slowly. Only 28% of Irish organisations are currently implementing real-time asset monitoring and performance optimisation, even though 64% are planning to do so within three years. Similarly, just 30% are currently streamlining permitting and compliance with AI, despite 40% planning to implement within three years.
We also see that digital twins remain underutilised, with just 10% of Irish leaders rating digital twins as the highest-impact technology for infrastructure, compared with 21% globally. Project management information systems were selected by just 2% of Irish respondents, compared with 18% globally.
59% of respondents expect improved information sharing between private and state entities over the next three years versus 31% globally, indicating a need for a more fundamental culture of transparency for the co-creation of valuable infrastructure solutions".
WATER RANKS AHEAD OF ELECTRICITY INFRASTRUCTURE
Drinking-water utilities emerged as the energy, water and utilities area most widely expected to receive increased government priority, selected by 79% of Irish respondents, the same as the global result.
Some 71% of Irish respondents expect increased priority for alternative energy sources, broadly in line with 72% globally. The same proportion in Ireland selected battery manufacturing and energy-storage systems, compared with 67% globally, while 67% selected waste management, compared with 59% globally.Expectations for increased priority across conventional energy infrastructure were more measured. Electric utilities were selected by 58% of Irish respondents, considerably below the global result of 75%. Gas pipelines and utilities were also selected by 58% in Ireland, compared with 68% globally, while grid manufacturers and designers were selected by 50%, compared with 58% globally.
Nuclear power also ranked towards the bottom of the areas surveyed. However, 54% of Irish respondents still expect the level of government priority given to nuclear investment to increase, broadly in line with the global result of 57%.
Michael Flynn, Partner, Global Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Government Lead said:
"The findings in this survey point to considerable activity and change across transport, housing, water, energy and digital infrastructure over the next three years. Irish infrastructure leaders expect increased government priority across areas including EV charging, affordable housing and public transport.
The challenge will be converting these priorities into projects. Environmental clearances and budgetary constraints were the two most frequently identified delivery challenges in Ireland, while almost half of those surveyed see a backlog of investment needed to bring infrastructure in their locality to a state of good repair.
Water stands out as the utilities area most widely expected to receive increased government priority. Expectations are more measured for electricity and gas infrastructure. Ireland needs a clear pipeline of deliverable projects, supported by appropriate funding and greater certainty throughout the planning and delivery process."
Deirdre Carwood, Partner and Global Head of Investigations and Crisis Management at Deloitte, said:
"Ireland’s essential infrastructure faces a broad range of risks, including extreme weather, cyberattacks, ageing assets and growing demands on essential services. These risks can affect communities, public services and economic activity, making resilience an increasingly important part of infrastructure planning.
As critical infrastructure becomes more connected and reliant on digital systems, organisations need strong cybersecurity and incident response capabilities. They also need to understand the dependencies between different assets and services, plan for different types of disruption and regularly test their response arrangements."
