The water regulator has proposed fining South West Water £1.7m for missing performance targets after a series of serious incidents of sewage going into the sea.
South West operates water and sewerage systems in Cornwall, Devon and parts of Dorset and Somerset. Ofwat said the company allowed sewage into the sea seven times in the year to April 2016 and that all the incidents were serious.
Ofwat said it would consider delaying the penalty until a price review in 2019 to let South West offset the fine against rewards that will be due from beating other targets. It will charge the company, owned by Pennon Group, interest and for inflation.
The regulator announced the proposed penalty as it published draft decisions on two other water companies’ service to customers.
Severn Trent qualified for a potential £18.8m reward for beating its commitments on pollution incidents and other measures – saving 10m litres a day. Anglian Water saved 3m litres a day by having fewer leaks than it had promised and is in line for a reward of £500,000.
David Black, a senior director at Ofwat, said: “All water companies have to consult with their customers on setting stretching performance commitments. Then we use outcome delivery incentives to focus companies’ minds on delivering what customers want. This is especially important when there is no competitive pressure on companies.”
