What discussions has the Minister had with Dŵr Cymru regarding its underperformance on investment as highlighted in the most recent Ofwat water and waste water operational performance reports?
I have regular meetings with Dŵr Cymru to discuss its performance and investment plans.
Every 5 years, Ofwat undertakes a statutory price review which determines the level of investment for water company business plans. The recent Ofwat water and wastewater operational performance report (the report) refers specifically to enhancement expenditure, of which £194 million has been invested between the first two years of the PR19 Business Plans, some £86 million below what was allowed by Ofwat in its Final Determination in 2019. The report does not detail how water companies profile the spend across the five-year investment period. Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW) has confirmed that their investment plan over the five-year period is not evenly distributed over each of the five years and will be higher in the last half of the investment period. Therefore the risk of underspend across the five-year PR19 investment period is limited.