UK water company names partners for €392 million infrastructure programme
The water company will join forces with construction and engineering giants Costain, Farrans, Jacobs and Mott MacDonald Bentley as part of a contract worth over £350 million (€392 million), to complete one of the largest strategic water infrastructure projects in the UK.
The programme forms a key part of Anglian’s Water Resources Management Plan which looks 25 years ahead to manage and secure the water resources.
A vital element of the plan is to create up to 500km of interconnecting pipes and associated pumping equipment, as well as upgrading existing infrastructure to allow water transfer across Anglian Water’s region.
By installing new pipework to better join up the existing water network, the water company will be able to move water more freely around the region in stages, from areas of water surplus in north Lincolnshire down, to the south and east of the region, where it is less readily available.
James Crompton, the strategic pipeline alliance director, said: “The challenges of population growth and a changing climate are felt nowhere more keenly than here in the east of England, which is one of the driest parts of the UK.
“Starting this project is a significant part of our planned investment in the region over the next five years, which will begin to tackle those challenges and secure customer supplies well into the future.
“The programme will make it possible to reduce the amount of water taken from the environment, as well as strengthening resilience by reducing the number of homes and businesses which rely on a single water source.
He added: “It will be a complex and challenging major infrastructure development. It presents an exciting opportunity for these civil engineering, design and construction experts and we’re delighted to have four such prestigious partners on board.”
Anglian Water has already proven the durability and success of an alliancing way of working. In 2015, the company signed 15-year contracts with its existing partners but recognised the need for specialist engineering and construction for such a large-scale project.
The tendering process to form the new strategic alliance began last year.