The cost of water for ACT households could be impacted by the Independent Competition and Regulatory Commission (ICRC) once a draft report into its methods for forecasting future demand for water and sewerage services are considered.
The Commission said it used demand forecasts to set maximum prices for water and sewerage services so Icon Water could recover its costs of providing those services.
The ICRC said it was reviewing how it currently forecasted future demand for the services to check whether the methods were still appropriate or could be improved.
“We saw value in checking that our methods remain fit for purpose and we are using the best available data, or if there is scope to improve our forecasting methods or data sources,” the ICRC said.
“During our 2018 price investigation, we found the medium-term demand forecasts were highly sensitive to minor updates to the data used in the models,” it said.
“We also noted that future changes in the climate, water policies and population growth in the ACT could potentially cause historical trends to become less accurate for use in our forecasting model.”
The ICRC said its Draft Report Review of water and sewerage services demand forecasting methods outlined a draft decision to improve aspects of its forecasting methods and the data it used.
“If we decide to make any changes to our water and sewerage services forecasting methods, we will apply the changes in our next price investigation for the regulatory period beginning on 1 July 2023,” it said.
The Commission invited people to have their say on the Draft Report at a workshop to be held early next month which will allow stakeholders to ask questions and provide feedback on its draft decision. It will receive comments until 18 October
Its 106-page Draft Report can be accessed at this PS News link with comments to be received until 18 October.
