Welsh Water bills to increase by 4.8% on average

Daniel Bevan - Editor

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Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water household bills will rise by 4.8% in 2026-27, taking the average annual charge from £652 to £683, the company has confirmed.

The increase means customers will pay on average less than £2 a day for water and wastewater services, with the company saying the rise is among the lowest planned by water and sewage companies across Wales and England.

Welsh Water said the price increase will support its ambition to deliver “world class water services” while underpinning a significant uplift in long-term investment.

Between 2025 and 2030, the not-for-profit utility firm plans to invest more than £4bn in its services, double the £2bn invested over the previous five-year period.

Of that total, £2.5bn will be directed towards environmental improvement projects.

The investment programme will fund work to reduce pollution, upgrade and construct new assets, cut leakage levels and improve water quality across its operating area.

Welsh Water provides services to around 3m people across Wales, Herefordshire and parts of Deeside.

Its infrastructure includes more than 36,500km of sewers, 834 wastewater treatment works, 27,500km of water mains, 65 water treatment works and 92 reservoirs.

Under Welsh Water’s not-for-profit operating model, any surplus generated is reinvested back into services and customer support.

The company currently provides £14.7m of social tariff assistance, with capacity to help up to 147,000 customers.

Newly appointed Chief Executive, Roch Cheroux, said: “As I start my new role at Welsh Water my focus is firmly on aiming at delivering world class water services for our customers and their communities,” he said.

“It’s vitally important that we deliver the service customers want at a price that they can afford.

“We understand that the recent price rises have been substantial at a time of rising costs across the board for our customers.

“Our aim is to deliver value for money, and we will work tirelessly to show our customers the value of all that we do for their communities and the environment.”