Reservoir consultation extended after online glitch

2 days ago

Indy Almroth-WrightSouth of England

An aerial view of the land that would be flooded for the project

People who want to share fuller views on a proposed reservoir have been given more time to comment after a technical glitch.

Thames Water's South East Strategic Reservoir Option, near Abingdon in Oxfordshire, would be filled in the winter with water from the River Thames and supply 15 million people.

The water firm said a technical issue with its online form had stopped some people from submitting a long response, so it would now accept emails until 23 January.

The statutory public consultation on the reservoir - roughly the same size as Gatwick Airport and costing up to £7.5bn - ran from 28 October to 13 January.

The water firms said the reservoir would supply local homes and businesses across London and the South East, including customers of Affinity Water and Southern Water.

News image — Thames Water's proposed reservoir would supply 15 million people in the south east of England

Thames Water An artist's aerial view of how the new reservoir would look as the sun sets on the horizon. — Thames Water's proposed reservoir would supply 15 million people in the south east of England

It said it would be filled from the River Thames during winter when there was "plenty available".

Water would also be released from the reservoir back into the river for re-abstraction downstream when river levels drop, or demand for water increases.

Customers of Thames Water, Affinity Water and Southern Water would all pay for the new reservoir through their bills.

Thames Water said it would play a critical role in tackling expected water shortages.

The water company is hoping to apply for planning consent from the government in autumn 2026.

It hopes to start the main build in 2032 and aims to have have it up and running by 2040 before being fully finished by 2043.

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