Water: South of England

(asked on 25th February 2019) - View Source

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the tendering process was in relation to the allocation of £306.2 million to water companies to develop strategic water resources options for the South and South East of England.


Answered by
Thérèse Coffey Portrait
Thérèse Coffey
This question was answered on 4th March 2019

As part of its initial assessment of water company business plans for the period 2020-2025, the economic regulator, Ofwat, announced that it would make available up to £358 million to companies for planning and pre-construction development of strategic regional water supply options, which may be delivered over the next 5 to 15 years. This funding is for pre-construction activities and not a commitment to construct. Of this £358 million, approximately £109 million is expected to be allocated to planning and pre-construction development of a South East Regional Strategic Reservoir. The rest of the funding is for development of alternative options for meeting the future water needs of the South East.

This funding will be made available through a gated process and Ofwat will claw back funding where a water supply option does not progress. Ofwat expects water companies to set out in revised business plans by 1 April, how they will work together to develop strategic supply options, how they meet the gated process and costs of completing works to achieve those gates, and how funding will be clawed back where schemes fail to achieve their milestones to the expected quality.

Strategic water resources solutions will be subject to public scrutiny through the statutory water resources management planning process and the planning regime, which will include the Planning Act 2008 processes for nationally significant water resources infrastructure.

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