Welsh Water has pledged to invest nearly £1.9bn towards environmental improvement between 2025 and 2030, warning that water bills in Wales could increase by £120 a year by 2030 as a result. According to the pledge, customers would be paying £5 more per month in 2025 and £10 more per month by 2030. The company also submitted its 2025-30 blueprint to the regulator for approval.
In recognition of the cost of living crisis, the firm aims to provide support to customers struggling to make ends meet with funds on account of its not-for-profit status. Welsh Water saw its number of sewage pollution incidents rise by 9% in 2022 and hopes to significantly reduce these incidents by 24% by 2030. By then, the company also aims to cut storm overflows polluting rivers by improving tap water and reducing the number of leakages. It will replace the lead pipes of 7,500 customers and use £13m a year between 2025 and 2030 to maintain and expand schemes to help the poorest customers.
The pledge is the company’s most ambitious plan, shaped by customers and the Welsh government’s price review guidelines. “It prioritises improving river water quality and addressing the challenge of storm overflows, enhancing key services, and strengthening resilience against the challenges facing the company, in particular climate change,” said a spokesman. If approved, it will be the company’s biggest investment programme, worth £3.5bn over five years, a 68% increase on investment between 2020 and 2025. The plan highlights its commitment to become carbon neutral by 2040.
“The challenge is significant,” said Welsh Water Chief Executive, Peter Perry. “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.” Chairman of Welsh Water owner Glas Cymru, Alastair Lyons, said the £3.5bn investment programme would also bring significant opportunities to increase the company’s contribution to the Welsh economy. It also said its research indicated that 84% of its customers have found the new plan “acceptable.
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