How does the non-household Scottish water retail market operate?
The Scottish market opened in 2008 and became the world’s first competitive water market, providing organisations with an opportunity to access to a range of benefits, including lower bills through increased competition. The retail water market in England didn’t open for a further nine years.
How does the water retail market in Scotland differ to that of England?
The Water Services etc. (Scotland) Act 2005 first established a framework for creating a competitive market, which required the separation of Scottish Water’s wholesale services from its retail function. In doing so, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Scottish Water, Business Stream, was created and became Scotland’s first non-domestic retailer.
Of course, the framework also allowed for new licensed suppliers to enter and compete in a retail market for business customers, bringing with this the benefit to both public and private-sector organisations of being able to compare services and charges between the water retailers and switch water supplier if they chose.
As with the English market, it depends on the size of your organisation, and the volume of water or production of waste water, as to wether the benefit of switching water supplier alone can provide meaningful savings. However, compared with the English market, the outright savings on water and waste water services are potentially far greater in Scotland, and this can be emphasised by the varying discounts available in different parts of England. Benefits still do vary, though, and are not always limited to those provided by a switch between water retailers.
Additional benefits available to Scottish non-household customers include:
- Improved value for money as water retailers look to provide USPs that include water efficiency services
- Improved standards of customer service based on the more competitive market in which retailers must operate
- Services made available to improve your own operational efficiencies, such as consolidated billing for multiple sites
- More access to help to become a more water efficient business, further reducing costs
Here’s a list of licensed water retailers serving Scotland*
* Listed in a randomly generated order
Bluewater
Retailing in:
Scotland
Brightwater
Retailing in:
Scotland
Commercial Water Solutions
Retailing in:
Scotland
Pinnacle Business Water
Retailing in:
Scotland
SSWB
Retailing in:
Scotland
Aimera
Retailing in:
Scotland
Everflow Water
Retailing in:
England Scotland
SES Business Water
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Castle Water
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Wave
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Waterplus
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Business Stream
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Veolia
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Regent Utilities Water
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Clear Business Water
Retailing in:
England Scotland
the Water Retail company
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Source for Business
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Affinity for business
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Water 2 Business
Retailing in:
England Scotland
Are you a water retailer?
Are your details missing or incorrect? Would you like to provide a revised summary of your business?
Email retailer@switchwatersupplier.com and we’ll help you provide an objective, third-party summary that maintains our desire to represent businesses without bias or prejudice.
For more information about switching water supplier call 03300 552532 or email hello@switchwatersupplier.com