Wellington Water boss goes off script, details organisation’s woes

Tuesday, 26 November 2024

One of Wellington’s many burst pipes destroyed a car in December.

The new boss of Wellington Water, which is seeking another $39 million in funding, has painted a stark picture of disarray at the utility.

“Even if the money tap got turned on today, it is 11 years until we have a day as good as today,” new Wellington Water chief executive Pat Dougherty told a Greater Wellington Regional Council committee as he outlined a best-case scenario for Wellington pipes if all councils opened their chequebooks.

Dougherty had been down to talk about “active risks”, but went off book as he described a growing shortfall of fixes caused by inadequate funding from Wellington’s six shareholding councils. He talked of coming into an organisation with “learned helplessness” and in need of a culture overhaul.

Wellington Water chief executive Pat Dougherty has painted a stark picture of the organisation he now heads.

Wellington Water was the country’s second largest manager of three waters infrastructure yet it did not have its own asset management system, he said. It instead used the systems of Fulton Hogan and Veolia, both which contracted to Wellington Water.

Dougherty said he was trying to find savings in the organisation but “it is a little bit difficult to have terse conversations when we are absolutely reliant on their goodwill”.

Wellington Water is now asking the six councils that own it – Greater Wellington, Wellington City, Porirua, Hutt City, Upper Hutt and South Wairarapa ‒ for $37.5m over two years for IT system upgrades.

Wellington Water chairperson Nick Leggett says problems at the water utility had revealed themselves like the layers of an onion since he came on board in 2023.

As well as the non-existent asset management system, other systems were inadequate or nearing the end of their lives, he said.

In coming years, a new entity will take over running the region’s water. Dougherty, who confirmed he would not apply for a job at the new organisation, said any new systems would be able to transfer to it.

Kent Tce has been leaking for 44 days - with an unknown quantity of water lost

Since starting in September, he had found ways to save money in the existing organisation. In addition to the $37.5m, Wellington Water was after $1.3m so it could replace 28 roles done by consultants and contractors with its own staff.

“We have consultants managing other consultants,” he said. It was also spending roughly $600,000 a year to get contractors to run community engagement on capital projects, when it could do the same with two staff members at less than half the cost.

Based on funding from councils, Wellington Water managed a “best ever” year last year and replaced 24km of pipes but less money meant only 9km was being done this year across the region. At the current rate pipes would have a 670 year replacement age – up from 250km a year ago.

The Post on Monday revealed that Wellington City Council has only allocated enough money to fix less than 1km of pipes this financial year.

The growing backlog meant even if all councils today opened their chequebooks it would be 11 years until the region’s pipes would be back to the state they currently were, he said.

Nick Leggett, who came on as Wellington Water Board chairperson in May 2023, said problems in the organisation had revealed themselves like “an onion” as decisions that were not made over many years became apparent.

David Bassett was the Wellington Water committee chairperson from its inception in 2014 to 2021. He is now he deputy chairperson on the regional council’s Finance, Audit and risk Committee, to which Wellington Water was presenting on Thursday.

“I stand by the good work that Wellington Water delivered during that time,” he told The Post on Monday about his Wellington Water tenure.

When the utility was set up in 2014 it largely used systems from shareholding councils, then there was “little incentive” to change when water reforms were being considered from 2017, he said.