Ofwat approves early start for £2.2bn water infrastructure investment with companies under pressure to reduce leaks and river pollution
- Ofwat has approved the acceleration of 33 investments by water companies worth £2.2 billion
- Think of measures to improve water quality and installing smart meters
The water industry watchdog has given the green light to accelerate around £2.2 billion in investment to reduce leaks and river pollution.
Ofwat said Tuesday it has approved 33 investment programs from water companies, including measures to improve water quality and install smart meters.
The first tranche of investments will begin in the next two fiscal years, from 2023 to 2025, with projects to be completed by 2030.
Part of the investments are measures to improve water quality and install smart meters
Last October, Ofwat and the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs invited companies to propose plans to accelerate investments in water resilience, storm surges and nutrient neutrality.
Under the plans, companies will spend around £1.7bn to stop wastewater discharges at sites across the country and reduce the number of discharges.
Meanwhile, £400 million will be spent on water resilience programmes, including the installation of 462,000 smart meters.
Ofwat said these projects will help increase drought resilience, reduce pollution and protect natural ecosystems.
‘The water sector has to deal with dry summers and more frequent and heavier precipitation. In addition, there is a need for significant improvement in river and bathing water quality across the UK,” the regulator added.
“To address these issues, Ofwat agreed with Defra to enable companies to start early with schemes embedded in existing plans, where they could demonstrate clear need and benefits to customers and the environment.”
The plans are part of the regulator’s effort to push water companies to improve the UK’s aging water systems after being criticized for not doing enough to hold companies accountable for polluting rivers and failing to repair rivers. to leak.
Earlier this year, Ofwat told firms they will be forced to stop paying dividends if their “financial resilience” is jeopardized as a result, while also requiring them to tie payouts to performance.
The regulator is now amending water companies’ licenses so that they must stop paying dividends if their credit rating is downgraded “to the lowest investment grade”, which would indicate that their financial health is at risk.