Portsmouth Water has awarded its AMP8 Telephony and Resilience Framework contract to Vysiion, an Exponential-e Group company, in a move that will replace the utility’s analogue phone connections with a digital communications platform across all of its sites.
Vysiion, a UK-based operational technology (OT) and IT infrastructure specialist, won the contract through a regulated procurement tender process. The company will install a digital communications infrastructure intended to provide secure, continuous connectivity for the water utility’s critical systems.
Contract timeline
The contract was awarded in April 2026 and runs until 2031, with a potential five-year extension to 2036. The first phase is due to be completed by January 2027 and will move Portsmouth Water off the public switched telephone network (PSTN) through a controlled migration from analogue systems to a digital platform.
The work forms part of Portsmouth Water’s AMP8 programme, the investment cycle running across the 2025 to 2030 regulatory period for water companies in England and Wales.
Why the PSTN switch-off matters
Telecoms providers in the UK are retiring the analogue PSTN, with the copper-based network being withdrawn and replaced by digital, internet-based services. Utilities that rely on the network for monitoring, alarms and site communications must migrate to alternative systems before the switch-off is complete.
For a water company, those connections support communications at treatment works, pumping stations and other operational sites, so the transition has implications for resilience and service continuity.
Security and standards
Vysiion said its communications systems are designed for critical national infrastructure OT environments and aim to balance availability, integrity and security with day-to-day operability. According to the company, the Portsmouth Water design will align with the UK’s Network and Information Systems (NIS) Regulations, the National Cyber Security Centre’s Cyber Assessment Framework and the IEC 62443 industrial cyber security standard.
What the companies said
Bob Taylor, chief executive of Portsmouth Water, said the partnership was central to modernising and securing the company’s critical infrastructure as it rolls out its AMP8 programme for OT assets, and that the procurement process demonstrated Vysiion’s track record in IT and OT environments.
Peter Clapton, chief executive of Vysiion, said the platform was tailored to the differing operational criticality of Portsmouth Water’s sites and that the UK-based service delivery and focus on long-term operability were intended to meet current needs while allowing for future changes.
Background
Portsmouth Water supplies drinking water to around 750,000 people across south-east Hampshire and parts of West Sussex. The company is also developing the Havant Thicket Reservoir, the first large new reservoir in England in decades, in partnership with Southern Water.
Frequently asked questions
What is the PSTN switch-off?
The PSTN, or public switched telephone network, is the traditional analogue telephone system. UK telecoms providers are retiring it and moving customers, including organisations, to digital, internet-based connections. Affected users need to migrate before the network is withdrawn.
Who is Vysiion?
Vysiion is a UK-based operational technology and IT infrastructure specialist and part of the Exponential-e Group. It works on communications and infrastructure for critical national infrastructure environments.
When will the work be completed?
The initial phase is due to be completed by January 2027. The wider contract runs until 2031, with a potential extension to 2036.
What is AMP8?
AMP8 is the eighth Asset Management Plan period, the 2025 to 2030 regulatory cycle during which water companies in England and Wales deliver investment and improvement programmes agreed with the regulator Ofwat.
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Source: Portsmouth Water.
