DCWW plans £1B infrastructure spending spree

Dwr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW) will spend £1B over the next three years on infrastructure projects across Wales, Herefordshire and Deeside. The programme includes £100M of additional investment in projects that were not originally earmarked for the current AMP5 regulatory investment cycle.


The company plans a host of improvements to the service it provides to three million people, including major upgrades to water and wastewater treatment works at places such as Llyswen (Powys), Bala (Meirionnydd) and Aberporth (Ceredigion); and improved renewable energy schemes such as at the Wrexham wastewater treatment works.

News of the £1B investment came as DCWW announced a £7M pre-tax profit for the year to March 31, 2012.

The company said that at a time when many companies and public bodies are cutting back on spending, this investment programme is employing some 10% of the construction sector in its region, with more than 50% of spend going to local companies in the supply chain, supporting some 1,500 jobs

Bob Ayling, DCWW chairman, said: “The Glas Cymru model means that our first priority is to our customers and looking after Dŵr Cymru’s extensive infrastructure for future generations. We have been able to accelerate investment and do more for our customers while bills are falling in real terms. 

“We are also improving the experience our customers receive when they deal with us day to day. Customer satisfaction reached a record 90% and we ranked amongst the best companies on Ofwat’s industry league table for customer satisfaction. Customer complaints have more than halved and have never been lower.” 

Ayling added that results from two independent surveys of DCWW’s largest business customers have been “especially encouraging” with overall service satisfaction standing at 89%. And at a time when household incomes are under great pressure, particularly in our region, we are pleased that we are doing more than any other water company to help, with more than 44,000 of our least well off customers benefitting from one of our social tariffs or our Customer Assistance Fund.” 

He said the company’s ambition is to deliver “the best possible outcomes for customers” supplying drinking water of the highest quality. “We also hope to show that the unique business model we have established for the water industry in our region is working for our customers. I am pleased to report that we have made significant progress in the year towards these objectives.”

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