Dry year sees Jersey Water profits parched

Tuesday 31 December 2019

Higher spend, dry weather and Brexit are being blamed for a downturn in profits at Jersey Water as the utility publishes its annual report.

Whilst turnover was up on 2018, profit between January and September of this year was down on the previous year due to a 15% increase in spend on key projects, preparations for Brexit and an exceptionally dry year.

Jersey Water’s Annual Report details the utility’s nine-month financial year.

Explaining the reduction in profit from £2.325million in 2018 to £1.593million in 2019, Jersey Water say that it is due to £10.643million spend on two “key strategic projects; the Water Resource Management Plan and its Digital Transformation Programme.”

Pictured: Jersey Water have invested in two major strategic projects this year.

They add: “Operating costs were also influenced by the dry weather resulting in increased energy consumption, Brexit preparations, higher pension charges and refusal of the planning application on the proposed bypass at Val de La Mare.”

Rainfall in Jersey was reported as being 18.8% less than the 5-year average. The utility explains that this meant the reservoir didn’t reach its full levels until March of this year before quickly declining again over the spring and summer to end the period at a well-below-average level of 58% full.

Due to these dry conditions, operation of the desalination plant commenced on 23 September 2019, for the purposes of topping up reservoir levels and testing recent modifications to the plant.

Also reported in the document was that water quality in the period had an overall compliance rate of 99.97% (31 December 2018: 99.99%). The water supplied by the utility was fully compliant with all regulations for nitrates and pesticides. 

The first three quarters of 2019 saw £2.818 million of capital investment in Jersey Water’s infrastructure. This included the replacement and extension of more than 2km of mains network, connection of 276 new properties to mains water, work to reduce leakage and £587,000 on improvements to the Desalination Plant.  

Commenting on the latest financial year, Jersey Water’s Chief Executive, Helier Smith, said: “2019 has been a successful period for Jersey Water, during which we made significant progress on the delivery of several key strategic projects whilst ensuring that, despite challenges, we continued to supply water of the very highest standard and customer service at a level of which everyone at Jersey Water is very proud.”  

Pictured: Jersey Water has published their annual report.

“One of the key focusses on the period has been the development of the Water Resources Management Plan which has highlighted that if no action is taken, in severe drought years, there will be a growing shortfall between the demand for water and the water available for use; driven principally by the effects of climate change and predicted population growth.

“We are looking at a range of options to both reduce demand and increase water resources. Our Island Plan submission made the case for a new reservoir on the site of Gigoulande Quarry that would provide much needed additional storage capacity for generations to come.”

“As an island with only 120 days of water storage when full, we are vulnerable to water shortages and drought. Over the winter period, we lose a considerable amount of water to the sea simply because we have insufficient capacity to store it.  

“The potential to repurpose the quarry as a water storage reservoir provides a once in a lifetime opportunity to secure a key piece of infrastructure, for the benefit of the island, that if ignored, will never present itself again. We look forward to working further on this important strategic project with islanders when we consult on our Water Resources Management Plan during 2020.”