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UK water regulator approves extra spending that will raise bills
Ofwat allowed £3.4bn of an additional £4.3bn requested for 13 companies, including £1.2bn to safeguard services and £477m to support housing and datacentres.
Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater London, warned that water companies cannot treat customers as a limitless funding source after regulators approved additional spending that is expected to push household bills higher across England and Wales.
According to the Guardian Business, Ofwat said 13 companies requested to spend £4.3bn beyond what was agreed for 2024 due to unforeseen costs, and it approved £3.4bn. The extra outlay will come on top of a separate £104bn investment programme already approved, which had contributed to an expected 36% rise in water bills over the second half of the decade.
Burnham said households have been asked to pay more while serious pollution incidents remain at record levels and that the government will study ways to give the public more control to help keep bills low. The article says five companies, including Thames Water and Southern Water, will be permitted to increase bills more than originally planned before the end of the decade, while the rest of the costs are expected to flow into the 2030s.
The approved additional spending includes £1.2bn aimed at safeguarding water services and assets, and £477m to enable housebuilding and datacentre development, the outlet reported. The Labour government, cited in the piece, has promised to build 1.5m new homes as part of efforts to address the housing crisis.