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Water companies from across the UK as well as supply partners, NGOs and academic groups have been awarded funding for 11 projects from the Ofwat Innovation Fund to tackle shared problems faced by the sector. See the full list as well as the thoughts of Ofwat's John Russell.
4 years ago
A new report commissioned by Ofwat has said the introduction of a B-Mex incentive, to measure end consumer satisfaction with non-household water providers, could “fill important gaps” in the existing regulatory framework. Ofwat is considering the recommendations of Europe Economics including running a pilot version from April 2022 ahead of potentially implementing the mechanism at the next price review in 2024, or via a different framework.
Everflow has set out plans to double its staff and increase turnover to £240 million in the next five years by focusing on its technology platforms after securing financing from the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund.
United Utilities has said it is on track for its lowest leakage rates ever in the first year of AMP7 and has more than halved its supply interruptions during the past year. In a trading update published ahead of its full year results to 31 March, the company also confirmed it has recorded no serious pollution incidents for a second year.
The main round of Ofwat's innovation competition kicks off in May with collaboration encouraged for entries that can win £1 million to £10 million to advance and commercialise ideas, models and processes that will benefit the whole sector. The regulator has also updated on activity in the first round of the Innovation in Water Challenge.
Last month Anglian expanded its Shop Window project, which aims to use the town of Newmarket as a live testbed for innovative solutions to the problems the water sector is facing now, and for the future. Utility Week chats to the driving forces behind the project.
Customer behaviour and choices are key to halving freshwater abstraction sustainably by 2050, a study by UK Water Industry Research (UKWIR) has shown.
With the level of bad debt anticipated to exceed 2 per cent for the water retail sector, Ofwat has begun consulting on the most appropriate ways to share the costs. The regulator has proposed raising the price cap and sharing debt between customers from 2022
Bulb has been ranked topped of the fastest growing businesses in Europe with Everflow coming in at third and Octopus at 26th on the Financial Times' list.
To address some of the problematic elements of decarbonisation in the water sector, this virtual innovation festival jointly hosted by Anglian, Yorkshire and Essex & Suffolk will look towards COP26
South West, Bournemouth, South Staffs and Cambridge's non-household water businesses have been renamed as Source for Business to create a national identity for the brand.
The judging panel for Ofwat's much anticipated Innovation in Water Challenge has been named. The eight experts from the water sector and related industries will judge a Dragons' Den style pitching competition
The role that the non-household water sector will play in developing water resource management plans and driving greater efficiencies has been set out in an action plan by wholesalers and retailers.
Bristol Water’s wholesale division was voted the best performer by retailers in the inaugural R-Mex ratings and was consistently high in the preceding league tables. The company built the division to be customer-centric and is now applying that formula to the wider business. Chief operating officer Richard Price talks to Utility Week about what’s been achieved and what’s next in the strategy.
Thames has begun a trial using smart technology that monitors sewers and alerts the company if problems emerge before they cause blockages.
Non-domestic water retailers will not face market performance charge penalties until the end of the financial year due to lockdown conditions, however operator charges will remain and temporary vacancy flags will not be reinstated.
