The company originated as the Wessex Water Authority, one of ten regional water authorities established by the Water Act 1973 which were privatised in 1989. Wessex Water Services Limited was purchased by American company Enron in 1998 for $2.4 billion and placed in a newly formed subsidiary, Azurix. Following Enron's collapse, Wessex Water was sold to YTL Power International of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2002. The water authority had acquired the assets and duties of a number of public sector and local authority water utilities:
Wessex Water achieved a score of 4.53 in Ofwat’s ‘Satisfaction by company’ survey 2012/13.
Drinking water quality
In 2013 Wessex Water's compliance with drinking water standards exceeded 99.9% and the company maintained 100% compliance with sewage treatment discharge consents.
Leakage
In both 2011/12 and 2012/13 the company's leakage figure was 69 million litres per day, compared to a yearly average of 73 million litres per day between 2005–10.
Carbon footprint
Wessex Water's greenhouse gas emissions totalled 119 kilotonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2018/19, compared to 149 kilotonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2011/12 and 159 kilotonnes in 2012/13.
GENeco is part of the Wessex Water group of companies and operates sewage treatment works. It recycles waste, produces renewable energy and provides the agricultural industry with fertiliser. In summer 2010, GENeco launched the Bio-Bug, a modified VW Beetle that runs on bio-gas generated from waste treated at sewage treatment works. Waste flushed down the toilets of just 70 homes in Bristol is enough to power the Bio-Bug for a year, based on an annual mileage of 10,000 miles. In November 2014, the UK's first bus powered entirely by human and food waste went into service between Bristol and Bath, run by tour operatorBath Bus Company. The biomethane gas is generated at Bristol sewage treatment works in Avonmouth, which is run by GENeco.
Environmental record
May 1998 – Found guilty of discharging over 1 million gallons of raw sewage into a Weymouth, Dorset, marina on August Bank Holiday Monday 1997, the busiest day of the year. The company was fined £5,000 with £500 costs.
May 2002 – Fined £8,000 for causing pollution in Dowlais Brook, Cwmbran in June 2001.
April 2003 – Fined £5,000 with £1,000 costs at Minehead Magistrates' Court after pleading guilty to causing poisonous, noxious or polluting matter to enter the Washford River in Somerset.
July 2003 – Described by the Environment Agency as one of the worst "repeat offenders" for pollution incidents.
2004 – Fined six times for environmental pollution incidents.
May 2007 – Fined £1,500 with £1,589 costs by Bristol magistrates after pleading guilty to one offence under the Water Resources Act 1991 of causing sewage to enter controlled waters. Untreated sewage had been allowed to pollute the River Frome in July 2006. The river was polluted again with untreated sewage at Frampton Cotterell in February 2007 and April 2007.
April 2008 – Fined £3,000 with £1,960 costs for allowing sewage to pollute the River Stour.
