Ofwat has published the key findings from two Major Water Infrastructure Programme contractor roundtables held in February and March 2026 - the regulator's Major Projects team convened two roundtable discussions - one with UK-based contractors and one with international contractors.

The Major Water Infrastructure Programme (MWIP) represents one of the most significant infrastructure undertakings in a generation. With a pipeline of projects worth over £50 billion, it will deliver the new reservoirs, water transfer schemes, and water recycling and desalination projects needed to secure resilient water supplies for decades to come.

Key findings for Major Water Infrastructure Programme delivery include:

 1. Market appetite is strong but conditional

Participants expressed a strong interest in opportunities across the Major Water Infrastructure Programme (MWIP) including both UK and international contractors. However, willingness to participate would depend on a clear and credible pipeline with a balanced allocation of risk. Understanding programme interdependencies and sequencing were also noted as vital to support investment decisions and resource planning….

For the programme to attract and retain market interest over the long-term, contractors indicated that they need more than a pipeline of opportunities. They need confidence that the MWIP represents a coherent and investable programme with sufficient consistency across projects to support long-term planning and resourcing. They also need confidence that projects will progress and that investment in bidding and capability is likely to lead to genuine opportunities to participate in delivery...

2. Risk allocation will be a key determinant of participation

Risk allocation emerged as one of the dominant themes across both roundtables. Discussion repeatedly returned to the challenges associated with risks that contractors considered difficult to control or insure, including planning risk, consenting issues, scope change, interface risks and inflation without appropriate indexation…..

For many, the issue was not whether risk should be transferred but whether it was being allocated to the party best placed to manage it. Contractors argued that where risks are perceived to sit outside of their control they are either reflected in their pricing or influence their decision on whether or not to participate at all. The insurability of risk was also identified as an important consideration...

3. Procurement complexity may constrain market capacity

Contractors emphasised that current procurement and delivery approaches can be complex, resource intensive and expensive to navigate. Participants pointed to lengthy procurement timelines,extensive information requirements and high bidding costs and questioned whether the effort required is always proportionate to the opportunity being pursued.

Several contractors suggested that this issue extends beyond the cost of preparing bids. The cumulative impact of procurement processes, contractual complexity and financing requirements was seen as placing a significant burden on organisations already operating in a highly competitive market….

4. Greater standardisation could improve programme efficiency

Greater consistency across procurement processes, contract structures, risk allocation approaches and technical requirements was widely supported. While recognising that individual projects will have unique characteristics, many contractors considered the current level of variation likely to increase complexity, transaction costs and the effort required to assess opportunities across the wider programme. They suggested that greater alignment could make projects easier to understand and evaluate. The scale of the MWIP means that contractors, investors and the wider supply chain are likely to be making decisions across multiple schemes rather than considering projects in isolation….

5. Balancing early contractor involvement and competition will be important

Several contractors argued that opportunities for earlier engagement would improve project development, helping to identify delivery risks, improve buildability and provide more accurate project costs and schedules. There was broad agreement that contractors can providevaluable insight before designs and delivery strategies become fixed.

Ofwat highlighted the need to maintain competitive tension to protect value for money for customers which participants acknowledged was a challenge associated with extensive early involvement from a single supplier. ..

Looking ahead

Ofwat is progressing a commercial principles charter, development phase contractor engagement workshops, standard form Template Competitively Appointed Provider (CAP) Agreements for both priced and target cost models, and a range of activities to strengthen programme visibility and market engagement.

Ofwat is seeking continued engagement with stakeholders and asking them to contact the Major Projects team at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with their views. The regulator is also planning a market engagement event in October 2026 and is encouraging all interested organisations to attend.

Click here to download  Major Water Infrastructure Programme contractor roundtables