Water Companies to Cut Bills by an Average of £50 & Invest Extra £6 Million a Day over Next 5 Years
Published on by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network in Business
Ofwat unveils a program of huge investment, service improvements and lower bills for water customers
Ofwat has today set out a major package of investment to signal a new era for what the water sector delivers for customers and the environment.
Proposals unveiled today involve water companies investing an additional £6 million each and every day over the next five years - over and above investment to maintain existing assets - to improve the environment and services for customers, at the same time as cutting bills by £50.
The announcement is laid out in Ofwat's price review draft determinations for 14 of the 17 water companies in England and Wales. Three water companies, Severn Trent, South West Water and United Utilities, have already been fast-tracked through this stage of the price review in recognition of their high-quality plans for the next five years.
In what is the most far-reaching price review the regulator has ever undertaken, there are ambitious new targets to drive water companies to do even more for customers and the environment. These include:
- cutting pollution incidents by more than a third,
- reducing supply interruptions by almost two-thirds,
- helping 1.5 million customers who are struggling to pay, and;
- cutting leakage to save enough water equivalent to the needs of the population of Manchester, Leeds, Leicester and Cardiff.
Extreme weather events, climate change and population growth mean that water companies need to make sure they are doing everything they can now, so that they continue to provide safe and reliable water and wastewater services whatever the future brings.
Ofwat's draft determinations provide more money for new and improved services with an additional £12 billion to be invested over and above business-as-usual costs and investments.
This extra funding is to improve services for future generations, including by building reservoirs, moving water to where it is needed most, and protecting the environment. The additional expenditure is the equivalent of £6 million every day for the next five years.
Falling financing costs and Ofwat's insistence on more efficient business-as-usual from companies, mean that alongside better services and rising investment Ofwat expects water bills to fall by an average £50 before inflation.
Media
Taxonomy
- Water Supply
- Water Supply Commission
- Water Supply & Drainage
- Water Supply Design
- Service Provision & Demand Management
- Drinking Water Managment
- Urban Water Supply
- Drinking Water
- Pricing
- Willingness to pay
- Paying Ability
- Water Governance
- Water Supply Regulation
- Water Supply Protection