Water & Wastewater Treatment

www.wwtonline.co.uk | WWT | XXXX 20XX | 19 Demand for chemicals The structures provide the chance for water companies to share intelligence on key topics and send a situation report to Defra on critical matters twice a week. One central concern in the context of no-deal Brexit was ensur- ing supplies of chemicals for water treatment processes. With coronavirus driving up demand for oxygen, which is used by a number of water companies for water treatment processes, the channel into Defra and the mechanism for sharing data on stock levels between companies are prov- ing vitally important. "All of the representatives from the companies were established and we could call that industry-wide group to- gether very quickly and dust it o• . In e• ect, it got us ahead of the curve in terms of our plan- ning and reporting and what we were monitoring. We got into a rhythm very quickly," says Spencer. "That group identi€ ed there could be an issue with oxygen. It's not used by all companies, but depends on forms of treatment. A lot of companies in the South do use oxygen. We proactively engaged with producers and distributors of oxygen. The National Health Service (NHS) has a high demand and, quite rightly, is a priority. Suppliers have been able to increase production and distribution and water companies have been ‡ exible in terms of, for example, times we accept deliveries, going late into the evening, which has allowed us to continue pretty much as normal. Therefore, although we were concerned, no risk has materialised with oxygen. Everybody's getting the deliv- eries they expect to receive," Spencer says. An element of this cross- industry working is a mutual aid arrangement whereby deliveries can be diverted www.wwtonline.co.uk | WWT | MAY 2020 | 19 between companies where necessary. "We've not been in a situation where a whole- industry prioritisation needs to take place and we would, through Water UK and working with Defra, think about how to prioritise. Generally, the work- ing relationships we have with each other, even though we are privatised and are separate companies, is very strong," Spencer says. With the water industry responding to challenges on multiple fronts, Ofwat has indicated that performance against targets on, for example, leakage reduction will be evaluated "in the round". Ofwat chief executive Rachel Fletcher wrote to water company chief executives on 19 March: "Incentives and penalties in our regulatory regime should not get in the way of e• ective prioritisation in the interests of customers. We will consider ex-post adjustments following an in- the-round assessment as part of our normal reconciliation process. This will require companies to demonstrate how operations were impacted by COVID-19." Additionally, the regulator adapted the wholesale retail code from 30 March allowing business retailers to pay half of their charges for March, April and May. In Scotland, the government agreed a package of measures worth £60 million to support the business retail market. Another front-of-mind concern is planning for a criti- cal incident, such as a major mains burst, which could happen in addition to coro- navirus. Meanwhile strategies for vulnerable customers are also high on water companies' agendas. "We're very mindful of a concurrent incident as an industry and particularly at Thames Water because of the scale of the population. Of all the incidents, a mains burst is the one exercising our mind in terms of planning and how we adapt. The risk of extreme weather is lower now because we're past the harsher winter months which can have a dra- matic impact," Spencer says. An industry-wide guide on incident management within the current context will soon be published, to include advice on distribut- ing bottled water with social distancing. On the issue of debt collection, "we are all stopping at the moment for obvious reasons," says Emmot, while Rule says Anglian has "schemes in place to help customers who are struggling to pay, ranging from payment holidays to reduced tari• s based on a• ordability." How long the crisis will continue and how companies maintain services over time presents an additional layer of challenge, much of which is yet to unfold. Rule says: "The challenges longer-term may be about keeping sta• motivated while they work at home. It's about social contact, wellbeing and motivation, and manager- to-team employee contact and supervision. Some people thrive working on their own, for others, it's the worst thing that could possibly happen. Things are going to get worse from an absence perspective so we no doubt need to show ‡ exibility and move people around. Com- ing out of this, I can't imagine our oœ ces are going to be entirely full again. There will be a new way of working." Consultancy Arup analysed Covid-19 challenges for water companies, including impacts on costs, revenues and fi nancing.

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