Economic Regulation of Water Services – Foundational Information Disclosure for …
On 15 May 2025 following a Government decision, Wellington Water Limited became a specified entity subject to ‘foundational information disclosure’ (foundational ID).
A form of light-touch economic regulation, foundational ID requires specified water service providers to share information about their operation with the public and the Commerce Commission.
The foundational ID for Wellington Water will apply until mid-2026 when a full economic regulation regime will be put in place.
Foundational ID requires us to determine what information Wellington Water must share with us and the public.
By ‘shining a light’ on performance issues, foundational ID can help incentivise improvement and increase transparency among providers, in this case making it easier for the public to see what Wellington Water is doing, and if it is making progress.
The final determination for Wellington Waters foundational ID requirements was published in August 2025. The reporting requirements for Wellington Water are:
- accessible public reporting on its progress in the delivery of the “Wellington Water Culture and Value for Money Improvement Plan”
- to publish on its website information that provides a clearer picture on trends in maintenance expenditure and fault management
- to make existing reporting on consumer-centric performance and delivery performance more accessible.
You can find the foundational ID requirements below, alongside:
- the reasons for our requirements
- our consultation paper, and
- feedback from submitters.
Next steps
Wellington Water will begin disclosing information from the end of October 2025. We will monitor that Wellington Water discloses the specified information, analyse the information that is published, and share summaries of our insights.
These summaries help those interested to better understand how Wellington Water is performing, and the insights could help guide any future regulatory requirements for Wellington Water.