Future price limits – a consultation on the framework
Since privatisation 22 years ago, regulation of the water and sewerage sectors has played an important part in their success. But the sectors face continuing challenges, and some strong drivers for change. And our own analysis and feedback from our stakeholders show that we have an opportunity to improve our regulatory approach to contribute to another successful 20 years. ‘Future price limits’ is a consultation on how we might do that.
We intend to build on the successes of our approach so far, keeping what works and improving where we can. This means we will maintain the stability and predictability that the companies and their investors value. This will help us to deliver on our duty to ensure efficient companies can finance their functions, in particular by securing reasonable returns on their capital. We will meet our duty to protect consumers by building a regulatory framework that puts them at the heart of the sectors.
Our key changes are in the following areas.
- Involving customers in outcomes
- Wholesale and retail price limits.
- A focus on incentives.
- Changing the way we assess costs.
- Simplifying the process.
In developing our proposals, we have listened carefully to our stakeholders and their views. Our combination of proposals is designed to meet our vision of sustainable water, and in doing so to address many of the areas where stakeholders tell us changes are needed.
Download ‘Future price limits – a consultation on the framework’.
Appendices
- Draft impact assessment
- Inputs, outputs and outcomes
- Remunerating and addressing risk
- Retail controls
- Wholesale controls
- Water trading incentives
- Cost-assessment, cost recovery and the RCV
- The treatment of unregulated business
- Business planning
- Testing our proposals for different futures
- Links to other reform projects
- Analysis of responses to the preliminary model
