Scottish Water Solutions has handed over more than £1bn worth of infrastructure and non infrastructure projects from the Quality and Standards (Q&S) II Programme to Scottish Water and is now working on delivering the remaining £70m of projects and designing, delivering and project managing about £800m of Scottish Water’s Q&S III (a) non infrastructure Programme.

Solutions work covers the whole of Scotland, including the Highlands and Islands and includes the building of water and wastewater treatment works; the laying of mains and sewers, the installation of septic tanks and unsatisfactory combined sewer overflows, reservoir security, the establishment of district metered areas and addressing flooding alleviation and poor water pressure.

To date, more than 2,500 projects have been completed with much of the work carried out by in-house delivery partners and associate delivery partners: local Scottish contractors are used wherever possible.

Formed in September 2003 by Scottish Water to deliver the Q&S II Programme for £0.5bn less than the inherited £2.3bn forecast cost, Solutions’ achieved this target earlier this year.

It is an innovative joint venture partnership and one of the biggest partnering agreements of its kind bringing together considerable experience in delivering efficiencies on large water industry programmes within challenging timescales.

The unique business model – a limited company within a publicly owned organisation – brings global best practices from each of its eight partners to the Scottish water industry, particularly in the fields of asset management, engineering, programme management and construction.

Scottish Water is the majority owner with 51% of the shares in Solutions, the balance is shared equally by two consortia; UUGM Limited, comprising United Utilities with their construction partners Galliford Try and Morgan Est and Stirling Water Limited, composed of Veolia Water UK with their construction partners KBR, Alfred McAlpine and Gleeson.

All of Solutions’ activity is directed towards supporting Scottish Water deliver its Capital Investment Programme.