Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 13TH - 19TH APRIL 2018 | 13 This week Anglian plans £800m network investment Draft water resources management plan details company's proposals for a resilient water network Anglian Water has outlined proposals to invest more than £800 million to build a resilient water network for the future as part of its dra water resources management plan (WRMP). More than £500 million will fund a "strategic grid" of new pipes to move water around the region more easily, which the company claims will "significantly reduce the likelihood of severe drought restrictions in future". It would feature a main pipeline running from north Lincolnshire to south Lincolnshire, allowing millions of litres of water to be supplied every day to customers in greater Lincoln shire, and further south if needed. Anglian Water said nearly every county in the east of England will see multimillion pound investment and new pipeline installations to join up the region. It is asking customers for their views by 1 June on its dra WRMP, which also outlines £44 million would be invested to install and upgrade the water treatment works in Elsham so it could serve the new, larger grid. In addition, £250 million of investment will be used to roll out "money-saving smart meters", tackle leakage and help customers become more water efficient. Anglian plans to reduce leakage by a further 23 per cent by 2025 to take it to a "world-leading low" level. The company recently announced it will kick-start the investment programme with a £65 million investment in the next two years – paid for through a reduction in shareholder dividends. KP See anlaysis, p8 ELECTRICITY EDF threatens to end Sizewell C project EDF has threatened to cease the development of Sizewell C unless the government agrees this year to come up with a viable funding model for the pro- posed nuclear plant in Suffolk. The boss of the group's UK arm, EDF Energy, has previously claimed the power station could be built for about a fih less than the Hinkley Point C plant under construction in Somerset by "copying and pasting" its design. Chief executive Simone Rossi has now reportedly warned that the government must make a commitment on funding to pre- vent a lengthy lull between the two projects, which would leave its workforce idle and put prom- ised savings in jeopardy. He said a delay of six months could be overcome, but a gap of two years or more would be problematic. "This is the year where we need to understand whether this whole thing is really feasible or not," he told The Times. "If we were to conclude that maybe it's not feasible, then at that point maybe we say we are not in a position to continue the project." ELECTRICITY Job cuts could result from lagoon delays The Welsh Conservatives have thrown their weight behind Swansea Bay's tidal power pro- ject amid reports that its backer is braced for job cuts unless the government decides to go ahead with the pioneering scheme. Russell George, shadow economy secretary in the Welsh Assembly, called for a decision on the tidal lagoon project to be made "sooner rather than later". Tidal Lagoon Power, which is backing the £1.3 billion Swansea project, said no job cuts were planned, but that they would be "one consequence" of further delay to the project, which has been in limbo since it was recommended for approval in January 2017's Hendry review. WATER Reservoir completed by Severn Trent Severn Trent has invested more than £40 million to expand Ambergate reservoir, which provides fresh water to parts of the East Midlands. At an event to celebrate the completion of the four-year pro- ject, the company's group chief commercial officer, Helen Miles, said: "A massive amount of work and planning has gone into this rebuilding project to allow the upgrades to happen while we continued to use the existing reservoir. "This was a big investment for us of more than £40 million, which involved modernising the site and increasing capacity." Multimillion pound investment: grid of pipes Stock watch 1,600 1,500 1,400 1,300 1,200 1,100 SSE SHARE PRICE, THREE MONTHS May 17 Jul 17 Sep 17 Nov 17 Jan 18 SSE SHARE PRICE, FULL YEAR Stock market pessimism about the outlook for SSE's networks business has "gone too far", analysts at investment bank Jefferies have claimed, citing the nil share price premium on SSE's regulated asset value. Despite Ofgem's proposals to drastically reduce the cost of equity for the RIIO2 price controls, analysts said SSE's core business remains "attractive", suggesting a target price of 1,500 pence per share. As Utility Week to went press, they were trading at just 1,283p. 1,350 1,300 1,250 1,200 1,150 16 Jan 30 Jan 13 Feb 27 Feb 13 Mar Finance & Investment pence pence 27 Mar10 Apr Mar 18

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