Coliban Water has received an ‘overall green status’ on its five customer outcomes, as part of the Outcomes Report 2020-21 released by the Essential Services Commission (ESC) today.
Managing Director Damian Wells said he was pleased to see Coliban Water receive an ‘overall green status’ which related to the water corporations five customer outcomes, previously endorsed by the ESC as part of the 2018 to 2023 Pricing Submission period.
“These outcomes, developed following extensive customer engagement at that time, have guided our business direction. Green means performance has been met, or has exceeded the target.
“The five outcomes, which are available via the home page of our website, are to supply high quality water you can trust; to provide infrastructure and services to meet the needs of our customers now and into the future; to reduce our environmental footprint and achieve a socially responsible, sustainable business for future generations; to be open and transparent with customers about affordable pricing, service disruptions and repairs; and lastly, to support liveability in the region.
“We self-reported four of these outcomes as green and one as amber,” Mr Wells said.
Amber means ‘came close, objectives mostly met’.
“We self-assessed ourselves as amber for outcome number five as one part of this overall outcome was a commitment to pay down debt each year.
Throughout the year it became apparent that several Coliban Water assets required significant additional investment. The investment in these works was brought forward from future regulatory periods, and this meant that we increased our net debt,” Mr Wells said.
“The additional investment includes the key work being done at our Kyneton Water Reclamation Plant.
“When we held a customer forum this topic was discussed and those in attendance accepted the need for additional investment and the decision to increase debt to fund it, hence the amber self-assessment” Mr Wells said.
“Overall, whilst our results are generally very pleasing, we are continuously striving for improvement and reviewing what can be done better.
“The ESC noted that our self-assessment was reasonable. We were one of nine water corporations to receive an ‘advanced’ PREMO rating by ESC, and of those nine, we were one of the four to also receive the overall green status,” Mr Wells said.
The ‘PREMO’ rating is a water pricing framework which stands for Performance, Risk, Engagement, Management and Outcomes.
The report notes the PREMO rating reflects the level of ambition of a business’s price submission, including the ambition of its outcomes by which it is measuring its performance.
“We will continue striving for these customer outcomes and our vision for the future as part of our upcoming Pricing Submission work for the 2023 to 2028 period,” Mr Wells said.
“We are building on our existing engagement programs through some targeted engagement with key stakeholders and community to understand how we can help the region to 'live, grow and enjoy' now and into the future.
“Our engagement will be carried out in phases so customers will see and hear from us at different times, in different ways – and have an opportunity to contribute over the next 12 months,” he said.
The ESC report also provided a status update of major projects. Of Coliban Water’s 11 major projects, nine are completed or on schedule and two have been delayed.
“We are pleased with this result. It’s been a big year for us and we’re excited to have either completed or be in the midst of key projects such as digital meters for customers, water network growth and pressure improvements, and upgrades at many of our water treatment and water reclamation plants such as Echuca, Heathcote and Bendigo.
“The two that have been delayed are the Strathfieldsaye water network augmentation project and the Castlemaine Water Reclamation Plant sludge handling upgrades,” Mr Wells said.
“In Strathfieldsaye, concept design works have been developed and this project is now due for completion in 2022-23. It is part of a wider package of works, which includes water mains in Marong, Maiden Gully, Strathfieldsaye and Huntly.
“For Castlemaine, this project is now expected to happen in 2023-24. Design works are due to start in the 2022-23 financial year,” Mr Wells said.
To view the ESC Outcomes Report please find it via their media release here.
To find out more about our Customer Outcomes go to our website.