13 Sep 2023
The government’s environmental watchdog, the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP), has identified possible failures to comply with environmental law by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Environment Agency and Ofwat in relation to the regulation of combined sewer overflows (CSOs). The failures relate to a possible misinterpretation of the law, which […]
06 Sep 2023
Ofwat, the economic regulator for the water sector in England and Wales, is calling on water companies with bold and innovative projects to solve some of the water sector’s biggest challenges to apply to win the fourth Water Breakthrough Challenge. To date, Ofwat’s £200 million Innovation Fund has awarded more than £105 million to projects […]
09 Aug 2023
Ofwat has published a consultation on its approach to introducing the water efficiency fund that the regulator confirmed in the final methodology for the 2024 price review. The final methodology said that “PR24 will introduce a fund of up to £100 million to help stimulate a transformative, sustained and measurable reduction in water demand nationally, […]
01 Aug 2023
Ofwat has concluded that only seven of the 42 PR24 bespoke performance commitments (PCs) submitted by water companies in April are potentially suitable for further development. These come from six firms: South West, Anglian, Thames, SES, Affinity and Southern. Most of the others, which were received from 12 companies in all (four firms opted not […]
13 Jul 2023
The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee quizzed key decision-makers involved with Thames Water to a public hearing of the Committee on Wednesday 12 July to explain the difficulties facing the company and the water industry more generally. The Committee asked about the causes of the problems facing Thames Water and the potential solutions – […]
05 Jul 2023
Ofwat has issued a statement on financial resilience in the water sector, seeking to provide reassurance following recent media reports, especially concerning Thames Water. The regulator says that “overall, the sector is continuing to attract international capital and is especially attractive to long term investors such as pension funds. Indeed, there has been an additional […]
05 Jul 2023
Ofwat has brought forward 33 schemes from 2025-30, to be commenced over the next two financial years, valued at £2.2bn, up from the £1.6bn consulted on in April. The additional £600 million will deliver: Ten schemes worth close to £1.7bn to reduce overflow spills by around 10,000 per year. The installation of 462,000 smart meters […]
28 Jun 2023
Latest update from the joint Environment Agency Ofwat investigation will be concerning for the whole industry The Environment Agency’s national investigation into potential breaches of permit conditions at wastewater treatment works by water and sewerage companies. On 18 November 2021, the Environment Agency and Ofwat announced separate major investigations into potential widespread non-compliance by water and sewerage companies […]
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