RD 21/08: Request for information
To Regulatory Directors of all
water and sewerage companies
and water only companies
Dear Regulatory Director
Request for information
As part of the work identified in Ofwat's May 2008 Review of Competition Part II, and to inform our contribution to the Floods and Water Bill and the Cave Review, Ofwat is currently analysing the potential for competition in water resources and treatment, and sewage treatment. To assist with this work, we would greatly appreciate any help you are able to provide on the items set out below.
We seek the information set out below by 3 November 2008. We are aware that the request below is non-standard, and involves data that you may not have provided in the past. However, we understand that at least some companies do keep the data we are asking for and that if this is so it can be provided relatively easily. So that the information we receive is presented consistently, we have specified in simple Excel spreadsheets how we would like you to provide it. If your systems do not support the submission of the data in this or a similar form, we would be happy to discuss what you are able to provide. If there is information you could provide before 3 November, its early submission would assist our process.
Once you have considered our request we would like to contact you by Monday 27 October to discuss how best you are able to provide it. So that we contact the most appropriate person to discuss this request, please send their details to John Bennett (john.bennett@ofwat.gsi.gov.uk).
If you wish to discuss this request before we make contact with you, please contact John Bennett on 0121 625 1724, or James Gilchrist on 0121 625 3626 or james.gilchrist@ofwat.gsi.gov.uk.
Information requested
1. Please provide data as per the three Microsoft Excel workbooks attached, entitled 'Sheet 1 – Volumes of water treated per hour per WRZ.xls', 'Sheet 2 – Water abstracted per method of abstraction per WRZ.xls' and 'Sheet 3 – Water treated per works per WRZ.xls'.
How to fill in each table
Sheet 1 – Volumes of water treated per hour per WRZ
We wish to analyse how treated water output from water treatment works and water output from service reservoirs vary over time for hourly time periods, per water resource zone for the year 2007-08. Please state how much water you treated per hourly interval for every day in the year 2007-08 and the volumes of water leaving all of your service reservoirs. The period should start on 1 April 2007 and end on 31 March 2008. Each day should be split into hourly slots, starting with 00:00:00 to 00:59:59 and ending with 23:00:00 to 23:59:59, making 24 slots per day.
In each tab there are 8,784 rows of data (as 2008 was a leap year). For each water resource zone, please use a separate tab within the same file.
Sheet 2 – Water abstracted per source within each WRZ
We wish to analyse how much water companies abstract using each method of abstraction. By water resource zone, please state each source from which the company is able to abstract water, (for example individual boreholes, reservoirs and rivers), how much was abstracted over the years specified and how much the associated abstraction licence allows the company to abstract.
For each water resource zone, please use a separate tab within the same sheet.
Sheet 3 – Water treated per treatment works within each WRZ
We wish to analyse how much raw water is treated per year by each of the company's treatment works in each water resource zone for the years 2002-03 to 2007-08. Please also state the total amount each treatment works could have treated.
For each water resource zone, please use a separate tab within the same sheet.
Confidence grades
For each table in each sheet, please assign confidence grades to the data you provide. A confidence grade per table column is appropriate. Please use the same confidence grade system as the June return.
2. Schematic network diagram
Provide copies of a current schematic network diagram (or number of diagrams) for your company's water network, electronically in PDF format. We do not wish this to be an onerous task, merely the provision of existing engineering network diagrams. We expect these diagrams to highlight:
- each abstraction source and its capacity;
- each water treatment works and its capacity;
- each sewage treatment works and its capacity;
- each pumping station and its capacity;
- each network flow and its capacity;
- interconnections between water resource zones and neighbouring companies and the volumes of water that can be transferred between zones;
- the extent of any transport constraints within water resource zones; and
- whether these interconnections are two way.
We are interested in the extent to which delivery constraints exist within and between your water resource zones and between your boundaries with neighbouring companies. Please include commentary on this issue.
3. Economies of scale and scope
Some respondents to the May consultation stated that there are economies of scope and scale within their company that arise as a result of vertical integration. Please list the economies of scale and/or scope in your company. Please also quantify each of these economies of scale and/or scope.
4. Optimisation
Please give details on how you optimise your water (and sewerage, if applicable) network.
Thank you in advance for your help with this work. As mentioned above, a member of the team will be in contact by Monday 27 October but if you would like to discuss this request before then, please contact one of the team.
Yours sincerely
Cathryn Ross
Director of Markets
