Way finally cleared in Laois to allow ESB to power new Portlaoise homes

New Portlaoise homes that have been vacant for months because the electricity could not be connected may finally be about to be getting a power supply.

The imminent connection comes after it was claimed that the developer was responsible for the delayed move in by families who have been left out of pocket due to the lack of power at the Sand Wood development in the Summerhill area of town.

The national spotlight was put on the development in July when people who had bought homes in the development went public to force some action. About 80 families who were unable to move into their new homes at the Hollybrook homes development.

Portlaoise native Andrew Dollard and his Kerry-born wife Julie were among those impacted. Mr Dollard paid a €48,000 deposit, is paying rent on a two-bedroom apartment in Portlaoise and has also had to fork out to store his new furniture which was purchased for the home he was supposed to move into in February or March.

“It is absolutely horrific. It is just a pure and utter sh*t show and nobody wants to hold their hands up,” he told the Leinster Express/Laois Live in July.

At the time the ESB said this has been a complex project, involving two separate connection applications in a power-constrained area, each requiring careful design and assessment.

"Following some necessary updates to the application, we received confirmation and payment from the developer within the past four weeks. With this in place, we are now progressing preparations to move forward with the infrastructure installation," it said.

Laois County Council's CEO Michael Rainey subsequently said that the issue would be resolved in August but there are long term power issues in Portlaosie.

Now the ESB has provided a new update to the Leinster Express / Laois Live which indicates that the developer has completed work needed to all electricity workers connect the homes to the grid. MORE BELOW PHOTO.

Finished but empty sold-out powerless homes in Portlaoise.

"ESB Networks understands the urgency for families as they wait to move into their new homes. ESB Networks has been working closely with Hollybrook, the Sand Wood estate developer, and the civil infrastructure required for connection is now complete. Installation of the electrical infrastructure will begin this week, enabling the first group of homes to be connected by the end of August, with the remainder following in line with the developer’s schedule," it said.

The ESB added that the responsibility for preparatory works lay with the developer.

"Civil infrastructure refers to the trenching & ducting for underground cables and the installation of plinths/vaults for minipillars and substations. In the case of a housing development, the developer is responsible for installing this civil infrastructure," said a statement.

Confusion remains over why the delay occurred in the first instance but Laois TD Brian Stanley says he was informed in July that responsibility lay with the developer. He pointed to written communication from the ESB to him in July.

"Since June 2025, ESB Networks has all the kit that is required on our part to facilitate connection. My local colleagues tried to begin installation when the equipment arrived, however the site was not yet ready.

"The latest update is that our local supervisor called to the site this morning 14.07.25. Unfortunately, a number of deliverables of the developer are not yet in place.

"Specifically ducting and civil works – such as the plinths on which we install our transformers – are not yet in place.

"ESB Networks cannot install our equipment until this work is completed to standard by the developer. We understand that the site foreman has indicated that it will be another three weeks before their deliverables are completed.

"Thereafter, ESB Networks will need approximately three weeks to complete our deliverables. We fully recognise that this is a challenging time for the affected families and will continue to monitor developments with a view to closing out on our deliverables as soon as practicable," he said.

Dep Stanley said the builder had not done its due diligence in advance of starting the project nor did it have a connection agreement in place with the ESB which is normally sought before construction begins or in the early stages. He also claimed that the builder had to make two applications for an agreement, as the initial information provided would not have met the electricity needs of the buildings. 

Instead, he said builders "pushed up houses" while people had paid deposits but could not access their homes.

The Leinster Expess / Laois Live is awaiting comment from the developer.