Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 20TH - 26TH APRIL 2018 | 5 WATER Ofwat expects companies to play fair on pensions Ofwat expects water companies to meet customers' obligations and "take fair account" of employee interests before making dividend payments. The regulator's chief executive, Rachel Fletcher, was responding to a letter from Frank Field MP in which he accused water companies of paying "massive sums" to shareholders while cutting workers' pensions benefits. The chairman of parliament's work and pensions committee raised concerns about plans by Anglian Water and United Utili- ties to close their defined benefit scheme to future payments. In response, Fletcher wrote: "Ofwat is concerned that some water companies have been more focused on boosting returns than on serving their customers and fulfilling the special responsibilities that go with being a monopoly pro- vider of an essential public service." She said Ofwat had set out an "ambitious programme" of reforms to get the sector "back in balance". See analysis, p20 Severn Trent has become the first water company to sign up to the Trades Union Congress Dying to Work charter, which aims to protect employees with a terminal illness. Eon was the first company and utility provider to sign the charter in April 2016. Liv Garfield (centre, front), chief executive of Severn Trent, said: "It's incredibly important to support any colleagues who have received such devastating news – no-one should have to worry about keeping their job if they have a terminal diagnosis and that's why we were more than happy to sign up to the charter." "We may need to take more actions to curtail generation and possibly instruct inflexible generators to reduce their output" In its summer outlook report National Grid warns operators of large gas and nuclear power stations there could be times when there is more generation than needed. Market Operator Services Limited has published figures for the first year of the open water market revealing that, at 1 April 2018, 123,005 supply points had switched since competition was introduced. The two largest retailers have seen the biggest losses. Water Plus shed 29,208 supply points and gained 23,658, and Castle Water lost 33,874 supply points and gained 7,708. Despite large net losses, the two companies remain the dominant players, with approximately 50 per cent of the market between them. -40,000 -20.000 0 20,000 40,000 Number of supply points Water Plus Castle Water Anglian Water Busines NWG Business Pennon Water Services Business Stream Water2business Affinity for Business SES Business Water Everflow Clear Business Water The Water Retail Company Water Choice South East Pod53 Regent Water First Business Water ADSM Three Sixty Water Aquaflow Yu Water Limited Waterscan Veolia Water Retail Thames Water Commercial Services SSWB Cambrian SWITCHING OF SERVICE BY NATIONAL RETAILER Sewage gain Sewerage loss Water gain Water loss

• Cover