United Utilities to increase water bills by 32% over five years

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United Utilities to increase water bills by 32% over five years

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PA Media

United Utilities supplies millions of households in the north-west of England

Household water bills for millions of customers will rise by 32% over the next five years, United Utilities (UU) has announced.

The water company, which supplies Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Lancashire, Cumbria, most of Cheshire and parts of Derbyshire, said the increase had been negotiated in December with the regulator Ofwat as part of its price review.

Household bills will initially rise by an average of £86 from April.

Water companies have said they needed to increase bills to fund infrastructure projects designed to reduce pollution incidents.

‘Investment’

Over the next five years, the average annual rise in bills will be £31.

Ofwat explained, however, that water companies were expected to hike tariffs more in the first 12 months of the five-year *******.

Additionally, the scheduled increases do not include inflation, which means actual bills will likely rise even more.

UU also announced it would raise dividend payouts to shareholders in line with inflation.

Chief executive Louise Beardmore said the increased bills would raise £13bn to invest in water infrastructure projects across the north-west of England.

She said this would be the “largest investment in water and wastewater infrastructure in over 100 years”.

Ms Beardmore also pledged to provide £525m in financial support to approximately one-in-six households across the region during the next five years.

‘Legal obligations’

On Tuesday the Environment Agency (EA) announced it had secured a commitment from water companies to better tackle pollution.

Its Water Industry National Environment Programme sets out more than 24,000 actions that water companies must take over the next five years to meet their environmental legal obligations.

The EA said this equated to £22.1bn of investment, and had been factored into negotiations about bill increase negotiations.

It said the investment would help protect future water supplies, boost natural habitats and biodiversity, and improve the quality of drinking water for consumers.

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