PR24: Welsh Water customers support bills hike

Welsh Water has proposed bill rises that 47% of customers would find difficult to pay, but are nevertheless supportive of.

The company’s ambition to 2030 was laid out in its PR24 submission to Ofwat last week (2 October), which included a £5.1 billion investment programme, up from just under £3 billion of spending for the current asset management period (AMP7).

Bills are expected to rise by a quarter (26%) by 2030 compared to 2025 for customers of the only not-for-profit water company.

Customer surveying revealed almost half (47%) said the rise to £581 would be difficult to afford, however 84% still supported the plan and the proposed improvements the company wants to make.

That support included 80% of those identified as struggling to pay, which the company said was “a strong endorsement of the plan overall”.

Welsh Water will commit £65 million to extend its social tariffs to reach 190,000 households.

Wholesale spend of £4.8 billion will include spending 84% more on the environment than the current period at £1.9 billion (up from £1 billion at AMP7) to substantially reduce phosphorous discharges from wastewater plants and addressing the 2,300 combined sewer overflows (CSOs) in its region.

Of the total expenditure, £1.9 billion will be dedicated to wastewater investment – almost doubled from AMP7. The company said spending would be focused on “where it can make the biggest difference in terms of environmental benefit”. This includes prioritising combined sewer overflows with highest potential to cause harm.

It will accelerate its metering programme, without making it compulsory for households to have one fitted. The company aims for 78% of properties to be metered by the end of AMP8, up from 51% forecast to have a meter by 2025.

Chief executive Peter Perry described it as the company’s most ambitious plan ever developed. He said: “Whilst it presents a significant challenge we are confident that it is both deliverable and financeable and will help to improve our performance significantly over the coming years.

“We have been able to keep bills flat or falling in real terms over the last 10 years, but we now need to make a material investment in our water and wastewater systems to meet the challenges of climate change, protect our rivers, and improve the resilience of our water supplies. Our research shows that the majority of our customers accept that this investment is necessary and should not be postponed. For our part we will continue to drive innovation and efficiency of our operations to reduce costs wherever we can.

“We are only too conscious of how difficult the last few years have been for our customers and this is why our Plan includes significant additional support for customers who are struggling to make ends meet.”

Performance commitments include:

• Lowering per capita consumption (PCC) by 7% over the five years
• Re-gaining a 4-star EPA
• Cutting pollution incidents by 24% from 89 to 68 per year. This will include deescalating the risk of harm at 186 CSOs from the highest to the lowest category. By 2030 61% of overflows will cause no harm and 100% by 2040
• Lowering leakage by 10% on its way to a 25% cut by 2030
• Working towards a lead-free Wales with the replacement of 7,500 lead pipes in homes
• Replacing 174km of asbestos cement mains pipes
• Achieving 90% phosphorous reduction to eliminate harm in rivers