Ofwat is consulting on a £400m Innovation Fund for AMP8. The plan is to keep the annual Water Breakthrough Challenge ‘Catalyst’ and ‘Transform’ competitions for water companies, but to boost the value to £250m. The remaining £150m would be split between two rounds of the Water Discovery Challenge for external innovators; a new stream for strategic […]

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Ofwat recently published two reports highlighting the role that water companies can play in helping to deliver water efficiency savings. The first looks at water efficiency incentives for developers. Ofwat is proposing requiring all water companies in England and Wales to offer a financial water efficiency incentive to developers in PR24 that go beyond the […]

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The Ofwat Innovation Fund has announced the ten innovations which have worked their way to the top in the Water Discovery Challenge. Having launched in January 2023, this challenge seeks new, impactful ideas for the water sector. The winners have been awarded a share of £4.5 million to demonstrate how bold solutions can help solve […]

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Ofwat has opened an investigation into South East Water on whether it has failed to develop and maintain an efficient water supply system. Ofwat explained that South East Water is the worst performer for water supply interruptions in England and Wales; in 2022-23 there was an average 3 hours, 2 minutes and 21 seconds lost […]

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Measuring Ofwat’s Impact presents an assessment of the benefits that the organisation generates as the economic regulator of the water sector. The report finds that Ofwat delivers customer benefits worth at least £1.13bn a year, against an average annual budget of around £30m. it focuses on three of its key work areas: the price review, casework […]

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Ofwat has published the Monitoring Financial Resilience (MFR) report 2022-23, which aims “to promote a focus on efficient investment that secures long-term resilience and delivers long-term value for money for customers and the environment”. According to the report, the water sector has attracted £4.6bn in additional money from shareholders since 2020, helping to improve the […]

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Ofwat has published key facts from water companies’ business plans 2025-2030, with information on proposed increases in investment and customer bills. The regulator is currently scrutinising these plans, including looking at water companies’ ambition for customers and the environment and the affordability of plans for customers. The proposals could see bills increase significantly by 2030, […]

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With party conference season coming to an end and a general election on the horizon, it’s worth looking at what a new government might mean for the water sector. The Labour Party said it would empower the water regulator Ofwat to ban the payment of bonuses to water bosses who are found to pump significant […]

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