Ofwat has changed the price control activities on the separate Havant Thicket reservoir price control at the request of Portsmouth Water and with the agreement of Southern Water with effect from 1 November 2024.
Ofwat has changed the price control activities on the separate Havant Thicket reservoir price control at the request of Portsmouth Water and with the agreement of Southern Water with effect from 1 November 2024.
The Havant Thicket Activities means activities carried out by Portsmouth which consist of or are related to the planning, development, construction, operation and maintenance of a reservoir located at Havant Thicket and its associated infrastructure, for the purpose of facilitating a supply of water in bulk to Southern Water.
The regulator has published a detailed 38 page document setting out Ofwat’s reasons for designating additional activities to be carried out by Portsmouth Water in relation to the development of the Havant Thicket reservoir.
Whether the activities are actually commenced will be dependent on Portsmouth Water receiving planning permission to carry out alignment works at the Havant Thicket reservoir and Ofwat’s satisfactory assessment of a second cost adjustment mechanism (CAM2) to enable funding for the alignment works.
Background and reasons for designating additional activities as 'Havant Thicket Activities'
The Havant Thicket reservoir will be the first new major reservoir in the UK in over 40 years by the time it is operational. Portsmouth Water is delivering the new 8,700 Ml (megalitre) reservoir which will provide a bulk supply to Southern Water to meet Southern Water's supply shortfall resulting from significant reductions in the amount of water it is allowed to abstract from rivers in its Hampshire region. The project is funded by Southern Water's customers.
In addition to the reservoir project, Southern Water is separately developing the Hampshire Water Transfer and Water Recycling (HWTWR) project which is being designed to interface with the reservoir. If consented, this project would facilitate direct raw water transfers from the Havant Thicket reservoir to Southern Water's Otterbourne Water Supply Works.
As the HWTWR project interfaces with the Havant Thicket reservoir, the reservoir requires changes to the initial reservoir design and alignment works - necessary interface works between the two projects including developing a design that accommodates two pipelines (the original design required only one bi-directional pipeline).
If Southern Water secures consent for the HWTWR, it would not need to construct a separate pipe for its project between the Bedhampton pumping station and the reservoir. The alignment works including the addition of a second pipeline are an increase in scope for Portsmouth Water's Havant Thicket reservoir project.
Based on information provided to the regulator by Southern Water, Ofwat has assessed that, of the options available, this is the most cost effective solution for increasing water supply to Southern Water's customers in the Hampshire region.
The alignment works will be carried out by Portsmouth Water - the water company is not tendering the additional works but is asking its existing contractors to price the works. The contractor pricing will be benchmarked by an independent assurer as well as Ofwat's own technical advisors.
Ofwat is currently still assessing Southern Water's Gate 3 submission for the Regulators’ Alliance for Progressing Infrastructure Development (RAPID) which was received on 31 July 2024. Southern Water expects to start the development consent order (DCO) process in the summer of 2025 for the HWTWR project which is subject to its own planning process.
Ofwat said its approval of the alignment works to form part of Havant Thicket Activities does not prejudice the outcome of the planning process for the HWTWR project.
However, the alignment works are intended to be undertaken regardless of whether the HWTWR project gets approval or not. As enabling works, if the plant does not go ahead, the alignment works still allow the original scope of the reservoir to proceed.
Ofwat says doing the alignment works at the same time as the Havant Thicket reservoir is built will make it easier for a water recycling plant to be connected to the reservoir, at any future date.
The designated Havant Thicket Activities which fall within the Havant Thicket price control now need to be updated to include activities associated with the alignment works including the two pipelines to integrate the reservoir with Southern Water's HWTWR project.
Ofwat says the update is necessary so that Portsmouth Water can raise funding for the works and can recover the costs of the works from Southern Water.
Click here to download Ofwat’s Updated Havant Thicket Activities October 2024 and statement of reasons for changes in full
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