Anglian Water begins journey to find enhanced delivery solution for multi-million smart meter installation programme

Anglian Water is taking the initial steps to explore an ‘end to end’ smart metering delivery solution to continue the rollout of its installation programme which is the largest in the water industry.

The water company would be the first utility in the UK to undertake such a large-scale, truly collaborative delivery approach for this work and is seeking potential partners to manage the whole smart metering process from beginning to end, encompassing supply, installation and network provision across the East of England.

Anglian Water is now looking for interested parties to get in touch to gauge capability, interest and to support the development stage of the project through a market engagement process.  A webinar will be held on 23 March 2023 with further information.

The new collaboration would continue into the next business planning cycle from 2025 to form the cornerstone in delivering Anglian’s next wave of smart meter installation. The period between 2025-2030, will see a further 1.2 million smart meters installed, to better manage the region’s demand for water, and help customers understand their water usage, as well as detecting customer-side leaks, which still accounts for around a third of all water lost in the network.

Anglian Water’s region is the driest in the UK receiving a third less rainfall than anywhere else in the country, meaning future water scarcity is the most significant challenge the company faces. Helping customers use less water by using smart meters forms a substantial part of Anglian’s Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP).

The plan sets out how the company intends to manage available resources in the future by balancing the demands from its customers with the needs of the wider environment and includes a range of supply enhancement and demand management measures which collectively, will keep taps running in the future.

CEO for Anglian Water, Peter Simpson said:

“We are constantly challenging ourselves to be the best company we can be, and to make a real and meaningful impact for our customers, communities, and the planet. The new arrangement would be key to driving forward our smart meter roll out programme and ensure we harness future technological advancements in water metering, networks, and data for the benefit of our customers.

“This is a great opportunity to change our way of working to deliver a programme of work which is so clearly aligned with our purpose. By introducing this pioneering delivery model, we’ll continue pushing the boundaries of smart technology in order to achieve the right outcomes for all, and crucially, we’re looking for likeminded, innovative companies to join us on this journey."

The purpose of the webinar is to introduce the market to the concept of the business model and encourage potential partners to think differently in how they might be able to work with Anglian Water to deliver this exciting project. Interested parties can register their interest here.