Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 19TH - 25TH JANUARY 2018 | 7 Interview T he 1st April 2017 was a huge moment for the water sector in England – and for Tanya Sephton, cur- rently managing director of not one, but two water retailers. The day the English water market opened to non- domestic competition, Sephton took up the reigns at South East Water Choice – South East Water's vessel for existing business customers – stepping into a leadership vacuum created by the departure of James Dubois, who quit his post aer just nine months. In the same instant, Sephton also gained responsi- bility for Water Choice, the national brand spun out of South East Water to vie with competitors beyond its own license area. The creation of the two brands, one a holding pen for legacy customers, the other with aspirations for aggressive customer acquisition, was deemed necessary when the young water retail market was born. But as it approaches its first birthday, Sephton must be gathering a sigh of relief. On 1 April this year, her two charges will merge, with legacy South East Water customers transfer- ring to Water Choice and the temporary South East Water Choice brand shutting up shop. Combining the two businesses will be no small task, but Sephton, a water industry veteran of 17 years, feels well-equipped for the remaining challenges. Certainly, her experience in roles focused on business planning, economic regulation, capital programme management and people development seem to arm her for most even- tualities the consolidated business might face. Indeed, as head of business transformation for South East Water, she spearheaded the business separation process for South East Water Choice. Sephton recalls that challenge fondly. It was a "stand- out" moment in her career, she says. And as Utility Week meets her at Water Choice's headquarters in Snodland, Kent, Sephton expresses her gratitude for being able to play a part in "one of the most significant times of change the water industry has seen". Sephton adds that South East Water invested the "time and effort" necessary to ensure its new retail arms company were ready, operational and compliant at mar- ket opening, and that having key players – such as her- self – in place to see the project through from start to finish was an important part of this. So what's behind the strategy to now combine the two retail bodies, sprouting from different arms in a company structure ultimately controlled by HDF (UK) Holdings? "It's always been part of the plan to do the transfer," Sephton states. The retail subsidiary South East Water Choice was designed to provide continuity of service and experi- ence to South East Water's 55,000 or so business cus- tomer in Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Berkshire and Hampshire. However, the company is only able to trade in its geo- graphical licensed area, and when the market opened the group's board decided it wanted to have a national presence as well – hence Water Choice, which sits under Invicta Water and offers water supply and wastewater removal to businesses throughout England. The latest figures from Market Operator Service Lim- ited (MOSL) show that the new entrant is doing okay. By the end of last year it had made a net gain of 144 SPIDs (supply point IDs), having started with zero on day one of the new market – not a bad effort, but a far cry from Everflow's SPIDs growth of 13,000. When it gains South East Water Choice's customer base, Water Choice's market share will balloon. But Sephton says the move is more about "simplifying" operations and providing "a more efficient and improved service to customers" than about leapfrogging up any league table of competitors. During the South East Water Choice transition pro- cess, Sephton promises: "We will keep our customers

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