Water contractual charges are largely made up of a regional wholesale element that is subject to change each year during a price control period.

The current price control period is set to conclude over the coming months, meaning that new wholesale prices will be introduced from April 2025.

Each region of England and Wales has published their indicative charges, providing retailers with an expectation of what the upcoming costs might look like for the financial year ahead. PR24 (Price Review 24) is predicted to bring increases, in most areas, although the exact percentages and hence the impact on customers will vary.

In a drive to support the delivery of better outcomes for customers and our environment, Ofwat included provision for the largest investment program since privatisation, looking to reduce pollution and improve resilience, adapting to put additional investment into climate change and work towards Net Zero emissions. As a result, price increases are expected to be significantly higher in comparison to previous years.

Ofwat’s final determinations are usually published between December 2024 and January 2025. Wholesalers will confirm their final prices shortly thereafter and charges will come into fruition, which will then be passed onto customers from 1 April 2025.

We’ll be in touch with you between January and March to let you know what the final price increase will be for each wholesaler region. However, Consultus felt it prudent from a budgeting perspective to provide our best indication now.

The graph below shows an overview of the indicative wholesale charges and expected increases per region: –

We can help!

Consultus recognise that increases in business costs are far from ideal in the current climate and we want to give you time to prepare for how any upcoming changes might impact you. Wholesale costs are only one element of your bill and there are still lots of other opportunities to reduce costs, helping to offset and soften this impact.

There is capacity for customers to reduce costs by lowering their consumption. The average business in the UK uses around 30% more water than required, suggesting that there’s a real opportunity here to reduce consumption by detecting leaks and inefficiencies and clawing back some costs, not to mention being environmentally responsible and supportive of sustainability targets.

Consultus can help you to monitor and manage your consumption through the installation of automated meters, capable of taking readings automatically on a half hourly basis (AMRs) and by using sophisticated data analytics to help identify opportunities to make savings. We can work with you to detect and address any consumption spikes by installing the right technologies to reduce water use and detect leaks.

Consultus’ Cost Optimisation Recovery Team has a wealth of experience in recovering costs and negotiating refunds across the UK, working alongside fully licensed leak technicians, billing analysts, site surveyors, trade effluent officers and surface water/highways drainage assessors, they’re able to identify irregularities that can sometimes feel impossible.

Furthermore, with over 450 different tariff codes in the industry, the tariff optimisation process will be able to identify areas where changes can be made to ensure your business is on the most efficient and cost-effective tariff. Our partnerships with highly trained technicians have proven delivery, often exceeding expectation.

All that we would need is a valid Letter of Authority and 12 months of invoices. To begin the process, call 0330 808 0866, fill out an enquiry form or utilise the live webchat.