April marked the beginning of the latest five-year business plan for Anglian Water – widely seen as a pivotal moment for the region as the water company embarks on a programme of work worth £11bn – its largest ever and almost double that of the previous five years.
At its heart is a redoubling of efforts to tackle storm overflow spills with £1bn of funding ploughed into tackling the issue.
Work includes a multi-million-pound programme to increase capacity and hold stormwater at water recycling sites by building storm tanks to reduce the likelihood of overflows.
This work will be fast tracked over the next two years, enabling Anglian to capture and store over 30 million litres of rainwater – equivalent to 375,000 baths – so that it can be safely cleaned and treated before being returned to the environment.
Emily Timmins, Director of Water Recycling at Anglian Water, said: “Alongside providing safe, clean drinking water, we know that reducing spills and pollutions is the number one thing our customers care about. This is why our business plan prioritises this over everything else.
“We’re seeing more bouts of extreme weather in our region – and we know this is only going to continue as our climate continues to change, so we need our network to be prepared to meet this challenge.”
Anglian Water will also be upgrading several water recycling centres (WRCs) across the region, including boosting phosphorus removal treatment. Commonly a byproduct of soaps and cleaning products, excess phosphorus can be detrimental to river health.
The concentration of phosphorus in rivers has already been reduced by 80% over the last 30 years However, Anglian Water aims to reduce current levels by a further 50% in the next five years.
Emily continued: “We’ve prioritised this work to deliver the biggest benefits first, because we recognise and share the desire of customers to get on with addressing this issue.”
Anglian Water’s @one Alliance celebrates 20th anniversary ahead of AMP8
Anglian Water’s @one Alliance has taken on its largest ever portfolio of capital delivery work as part of Anglian Water’s AMP8 business plan, worth £11 billion.
The Alliance, formed of partner organisations Anglian Water, Balfour Beatty, Barhale, Binnies, Mott MacDonald Bentley, MWH Treatment, Skanska and Sweco, was introduced in AMP4 (2005-2010) as a strategic delivery vehicle for Anglian Water’s Integrated Main Works programme.
The Alliance has delivered nearly £4 billion of investment into the Anglian Water region so far in its 20-year partnership.
As Anglian Water’s first Alliance, the @one Alliance made waves in the water and construction industry due to its unique outperformance commercial model, which sees the Alliance tasked with delivering schemes below Anglian Water’s target cost – allowing Anglian Water to reinvest its efficiency savings back into new projects.
This year has ushered in a new Asset Management Period (AMP) across the water industry, and the @one Alliance will deliver over 750 projects worth over £3bn on Anglian Water’s behalf.
Construction work has already started on over 120 sites across the region.
Managing director Ian Hutchinson said: “I’m hugely proud of our alliancing model and everything we have achieved together – especially in this transformational time which will see @one’s output more than double.
“We’ve got some big targets to hit in AMP8 but there’s a lot to celebrate when it comes to our achievements over the last five years. We’ve delivered 672 schemes, reduced capital carbon by 65% and reduced operational carbon by 6,600 tonnes against our baseline.
“None of this would have been possible if it wasn’t for all the people who’ve given their time to make the Alliance what it is today. This milestone is really a celebration of their hard work and I’m excited to see how the Alliance continues to develop over the next five years.”
Major water pipe upgrades announced
The @one Alliance is due to begin upgrades to pipes in Wiggenhall St Germans, Tydd St Giles and Newton to help safeguard water supplies for decades to come.
Anglian Water supplies nearly a billion of litres of clean and healthy drinking water to its customers each day.
When pipes get old, they’re more likely to burst or leak – meaning customers could experience low pressure or interruptions to their water supplies.
With the added pressure of a changing climate, ageing water mains are at risk of failing under extreme weather conditions.
Three kilometres of pipes are to be installed in Wiggenhall St Germans at a cost of £590,000.
The work – scheduled for completion this winter – will involve the use of a special technique called directional drilling, designed to prevent digging up large areas.
Work is also starting on a similar scheme worth over £1.2m in Tydd St Giles and Newton, which is expected to be completed early next year.
Once the pipes are installed, they will be connected to the existing water network, which could lead to some interruptions to customer supplies for a short time.
Ashton Carradine, Customer Experience Specialist for the project, said: “We operate in the driest region of the country, but the East of England is also one of the fastest growing. As part of our Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP), this project will help make sure we can keep taps running and toilets flushing for residents in and around Wiggenhall St Germans for years to come.
“To do this work safely, we need to work in and around local roads, as going through fields and verges would be too difficult because of tree roots, bushes, ditches and underground services like gas pipes and electricity cables.
“The roads are too narrow to work safely and still allow traffic to pass, so we’ll need to close them fully while we install the pipe. But we’ll have two teams on site working together to get the work done as quick as we can. We’d like to thank everyone for their patience while we carry out this essential work.”
