Wave has secured a series of new water retail contracts with small and medium-sized businesses across the UK’s leisure, hospitality and sports sectors.
The new customers include Stoke Park Country Estate, Durham Cricket Club, Blackpool Football Club, Hunstanton Golf Club and Wyboston Lakes Resort. Wave reports that its leisure and hotel customer base has increased by 25% during the past year.
Wave expands leisure and sports customer portfolio
The contract wins cover businesses with varied water requirements, from maintaining golf courses and sports facilities to operating hotels, kitchens, leisure centres and event venues.
These sites can use significant volumes of water for irrigation, cleaning, catering, washrooms, accommodation and grounds maintenance. Monitoring consumption and identifying leakage can therefore reduce both operating costs and unnecessary demand.
Wave supports more than 300,000 businesses with water and wastewater retail services. Its customers range from small companies with individual premises to large organisations operating extensive property portfolios.
Business customers seek greater control of water costs
Businesses in England’s competitive non-household water market can choose which retailer manages their account. The retailer handles services including billing, meter readings, customer support and water-efficiency advice, while the regional wholesaler continues to provide the physical water and wastewater network.
Wave provides services such as consumption monitoring, automatic meter reading, water-efficiency audits and leakage investigation. These measures are intended to help customers identify unusual demand and reduce the amount of water lost through inefficient equipment or undetected leaks.
Lissa Wood, Director of SME Customers at Wave, said businesses were paying greater attention to water management as operating costs and sustainability expectations increased.
“We’re seeing strong momentum from SMEs as more businesses recognise the value that effective water management can deliver, as rising operational costs and increasing sustainability expectations mean businesses are looking for practical ways to reduce consumption, improve efficiency and save money.”
Wood said the new customers demonstrate the range of sectors where better monitoring and efficiency measures can affect water consumption.
“These new partnerships demonstrate the breadth of sectors where we can make a real difference, from hospitality and retail through to sport and manufacturing.”
England faces growing pressure on water supplies
The contract wins come as businesses face growing pressure to manage water consumption and prepare for future supply constraints.
The Environment Agency’s National Framework for Water Resources estimates that, without further action, England could face a public water-supply deficit of up to five billion litres per day by 2055.
The forecast reflects the combined effects of population growth, climate change, drought resilience requirements and planned reductions in abstraction to protect the environment. Demand from sectors including energy, food production and data centres could place additional pressure on available supplies.
Improving business water efficiency forms one part of the response alongside leakage reduction, new reservoirs, water transfers, recycling projects and other supply infrastructure.
Wave reports 10.4 billion litres of customer savings
Wave says its work with customers has helped save approximately 10.4 billion litres of water over five years. The reported savings have been delivered through measures including leakage detection, meter-data analysis, efficiency audits and changes to water-using equipment.
H2O Global News previously reported that Wave exceeded its five-year water-saving target ahead of schedule. The company has also launched Water Efficiency Services to support wider water-saving programmes involving wholesalers, retailers and third-party organisations.
Wood said businesses of all sizes could contribute by understanding how water is used across their operations and acting when consumption indicates possible leakage or inefficiency.
“Businesses of all sizes can take control of their water usage by working with a partner who will support them to understand their usage better and help them to use water more wisely.”
Frequently asked questions
Which new customers have selected Wave?
The announced customers are Stoke Park Country Estate, Durham Cricket Club, Blackpool Football Club, Hunstanton Golf Club and Wyboston Lakes Resort.
How much has Wave’s leisure and hotel customer base grown?
Wave reports that its leisure and hotel customer base has increased by 25% during the past year.
How many businesses does Wave support?
Wave says it provides water and wastewater retail services to more than 300,000 businesses.
What services can a business water retailer provide?
A business water retailer can manage billing, meter readings and customer support while also providing services such as consumption monitoring, water-efficiency audits and leakage investigation.
How much water has Wave helped customers save?
Wave reports that its customer efficiency programmes have helped save approximately 10.4 billion litres of water over the past five years.
Source: Wave Utilities.
