Welsh Water is to pay a proposed £44.7m after the industry regulator found “serious and unacceptable” breaches in the supplier’s sewage and network services. Ofwat said the non-profit Dŵr Cymru failed to properly operate, maintain and upgrade its wastewater network to ensure it could cope with levels of sewage. It also lacked adequate processes and oversight by senior management.
The enforcement package includes £40.6m to reduce spills at specific overflows, reduce environmental damage, and tackle groundwater entering the sewer network, plus an extra £4.1m to improve river quality in sensitive catchments. This is one of the largest water company fines in recent years.
Lynn Parker, Ofwat’s senior director for enforcement, stated: “Our investigation has found serious and unacceptable breaches in how Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water has operated and maintained its sewage works and networks, which has resulted in excessive spills from storm overflows to the environment. We now expect them to put things right so customers can regain trust.”
Unlike English water companies, Dŵr Cymru is not-for-profit, supplying 3 million people across Wales and parts of Herefordshire. In 2024, Natural Resources Wales found it responsible for the highest number of sewage pollution incidents in a decade, a 42% increase. The company was also fined £40m by Ofwat in March 2024 for misleading customers on leakage performance.
A Dŵr Cymru spokesperson said: “We accept the findings and apologise. We have started a major transformation programme to improve performance and accelerate investment for better outcomes for rivers and coastal waters.” The action is the seventh in Ofwat’s sector-wide sewage investigation, bringing total fines so far to over £300m.
