Severn Trent creates new company for Welsh customers

Water company Severn Trent will bring together all its Welsh customers into a single company called Hafren Dyfrdwy from 1 July.

Hafren Dyfrdwy, which means Severn Dee – the two major rivers in the area – will incorporate all the customers in Wales previously served by Severn Trent and Dee Valley.

Severn Trent paid £84 million for Dee Valley in February last year, after it outbid a rival offer of £78.5 million from investment fund Ancala.

The move will see 35,100 homes and 3,900 businesses in Powys and Monmouthshire, who are currently Severn Trent customers, join with Dee Valley customers in Wales to be served by Hafren Dyfrdwy.

The 49,700 homes who are currently Dee Valley customers in England will then move to Severn Trent.

With its headquarters in Wrexham the new company will be “dedicated solely to Welsh customers”. It will offer current Dee Valley customers a 24/7 customer service for the first time, as well as introducing new channels such as social media and webchat.

Severn Trent said Hafren Dyfrdwy’s most vulnerable customers will be able to get up to 90 per cent off their bills, compared to Dee Valley customers who could previously get up to 30 per cent off. A care and assistance team has been created to “cater specifically for their needs”.

Sarah Bentley, chief customer officer at Severn Trent, said: “We’ll still be providing everyone with the same wonderful water they’re used to but, for the first time, all our Welsh customers will be served by a Welsh company.

“The change will allow us to ensure we bring the best of both companies together and also make certain we have the right local focus for our customers in each country.

“There’s nothing our customers need to do. Information will be going out over the coming weeks – and customers can carry on enjoying their water in the same way they always have.”

Severn Trent said the main difference between Welsh and English customers relates to business customers due to the competitive market in England, which allows businesses to choose their water retailer.

In Wales, only businesses which use 50 million litres of water a year are eligible to switch water retailers, otherwise they will continue to be served by their regional water company.

It means that business customers in England which were previously served by Dee Valley will enter the market on 1 July and will be able to pick and choose their supplier for the first time.

Ofwat approved an application by Severn Trent in March to vary its area of appointment to enable it to become the water supplier for Dee Valley customers located in England.

At the same time the regulator approved an application by Dee Valley Water to allow the company to start providing water and wastewater services to Severn Trent Water’s Welsh customers in Powys and Monmouthshire.

As part of the process of setting up the new company, three non-executive directors have been appointed: Ann Beynon, Sally Jones-Evans and Mohammed Mehmet.

Beynon is currently Severn Trent’s senior adviser on Welsh Affairs and a former director for Wales for BT. Jones-Evans is a former senior executive of Lloyds Banking Group and a current non-executive director of the Principality Building Society and the Department for International Development.

Mehmet was chief executive of Denbighshire County Council for 10 years, transforming it from being one of the “weakest to one of the consistently highest performers” in Wales. He has also recently been appointed as interim CEO of Powys County Council.

Severn Trent’s chief executive Liv Garfield was named Veuve Clicquot Business Woman of the year earlier this month.