Rival bid for Millennium Dome water contract

THAMES WATER is facing an unexpected rival bid for the multi- million pound contract to supply water and sewerage services to the Millennium Dome in Greenwich, South-east London. Albion Water, the joint venture company formed last year by South West Water and Enviro-Logic, the consultancy group which has pioneered water competition, has submitted an application to provide water to the site to Ofwat, the industry watchdog.

Jeremy Bryan, Albion's managing director, said the proposals would reduce drinking water demand by 40 per cent compared with Thames' plans, by extracting supplies from on-site boreholes and using part-treated water for toilet flushing. The application includes the Dome, which will have 700 lavatories and the Millennium Village nearby, with 1,400 homes and other facilities.