Exclusive: Partners named for £2bn utility projects in region

Mott MacDonald Bentley, BarhaleWSP, Earth Tech Morrison, Morgan Est Grontmij, Byzac/Entec, Balfour Beatty and Morrison Utility Services will be responsible for helping the company combat flooding and improve bathing water quality in the region.

The company will spend a total of 1.9bn, including 1.35bn on infrastructure projects such as improving its clean- and waste-water treatment works.

The major upgrade will see 85m spent on sewerage replacement and millions more to replace miles of pipes from waterworks to taps.

The investment also aims to prevent sewer water flooding, and an improvement in Yorkshire's coastal waters and well-known tourist resorts such as Scarborough, Bridlington and Filey.

Teams from each of the appointed partners will be joining Yorkshire Water employees to form a 500-strong Asset Delivery Unit, which will be based out of the company's recently acquired Leeds city centre offices, at Livingstone House, on Clarence Dock.

Charlie Haysom, head of the Asset Delivery Unit, said: "We're delighted to welcome our partners to the team and look forward to working with them to deliver the challenging programme of investment we

have planned over the next five years.

"As a major investor in the region, we're committed to ensuring we continue to offer our customers the very best level of service for the lowest possible price, and this programme of work – the largest we've ever embarked on – should go a long way to achieving this."

The company confirmed the leasing of 55,000 sq ft – more than two-thirds – of Livingstone House in November 2009, in what is believed to be the city's biggest letting deal of the year.

The new team will occupy five of the building's six floors. Interior design company Carey Jones was contracted by the company to create a modern working environment.

In November, Yorkshire Water said it saw a decline in income from business customers as local companies went bust or cut water usage.

But the group said pre-tax profits for the year to September 30 rose six per cent, to 116m, thanks to higher tariffs and a reduction in costs.

It said turnover increased three per cent, to 437.6m, over the six-month period, while average tariffs increased by 5.1 per cent.

Yorkshire Water also received the lowest number of complaints out of the "big 10" water companies for the second year running, according to a report by the Consumer Council for Water.

Where the money is going

Some of the investment Yorkshire Water has planned for the region over the course of the next five years includes:

100m to reduce the number of sewer flooding incidents and protect the company's sewage-treatment works from extreme weather.

92m to improve the quality of drinking water and secure drinking-water supplies.

110m to help improve bathing water quality along Yorkshire's East Coast – boosting tourism and benefiting local businesses like hotels and restaurants.