Ofwat confirms £44.7m enforcement action against Welsh Water over sewage spills

Welsh Water will have to pay nearly £45 million towards improving its sewer network, after an investigation by industry regulators Ofwat found serious failures.

The not-for-profit company, based near Nelson, breached its legal obligations by failing to properly operate, maintain and upgrade sewage treatment works and sewer infrastructure.

Ofwat said the failures contributed to excessive spills from storm overflows into the environment.

In March, the regulator proposed that Welsh Water funds £44.7m worth of environmental improvements between 2025 and 2030, including work to reduce sewage spills and improve river water quality.

A consultation period followed, where customers and stakeholders provided feedback on the provisional decision.

Having looked at the responses received during the consultation, Ofwat is now officially taking action against Welsh Water.

Of the enforcement package, £40.6m will be spent reducing spills at specific storm overflows and tackling groundwater entering the sewer network, while £4.1m will fund improvements to river water quality in environmentally sensitive areas.

The company has also agreed to investigate parts of the sewer network where groundwater infiltration is contributing to frequent overflows.

Costs will be met by the company rather than through higher customer bills.

Lynn Parker, Ofwat’s senior director for enforcement, said: “Our investigation found serious and unacceptable breaches in how Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water has operated its wastewater assets which has resulted in excessive spills to the environment.

“With this investigation now concluded, we expect the company to focus on putting things right so that customers can regain trust in their water company.”

She added: “We are playing our part in holding companies to account, with this announcement marking the seventh case we have now closed in our sector-wide investigation – taking the total of resulting enforcement packages and fines to more than £300m.”

In March, Welsh Water said it accepted the findings and apologised for falling short of standards.

A Welsh Water spokesperson previously said: “We have started a major transformation programme across the company, including within our wastewater services, focused on improving performance, strengthening operational oversight and accelerating investment to deliver better outcomes for rivers and coastal waters.

“The investigation has considered both historic and more recent compliance, and we accept that improvements are needed. We have already taken steps to strengthen our governance, oversight and compliance arrangements as part of a wider transformation programme across the business.”