Portsmouth Water unveils new machinery for next step in Havant Thicket Reservoir project

Portsmouth Water celebrated a new milestone in the construction of the Havant Thicket Reservoir project as new machinery to create tunnelling for pipelines was unveiled at an event held at the project site.

At an event held in the pipelines workshop, Bob Taylor, Chief Executive Officer for Portsmouth Water, said: “We’ve made great progress on the reservoir construction. Today is about another milestone, a big highlight in the Haven Thicket Reservoir Journey.

“This is a really exciting moment for the project as we get ready to start tunnelling work on the new pipelines that will be used to fill the reservoir and take out water to supply customers.”

The tunnelling will connect the reservoir to the Bedhampton Springs, and the wider water network. Borers will be used to make tunnels deep underground in built up areas, to reduce the amount of disturbance to local residents.

Mr Taylor said: “By using micro-tunnelling for much of the route, rather than digging up roads and pavements, we can carry out this important work while reducing the impact on local people.”

Ben Ring, Managing Director Capital Projects at Southern Water said that securing a reliable water supply in the region was “essential”.

“Built by Portsmouth Water, and funded over time by Southern Water supply customers, the reservoir will play a central role in our plans to transfer the way we source, treat, and supply water across the county.

“Today is about more than the start of pipeline tunnelling, it represents another step towards a more secure and sustainable water future for our region.”

The event saw the two new tunnel boring machines officially named following a competition that attracted more than 300 entries from pupils at over 60 local schools.

Dora the Borer, named by Tiggy from St Thomas More’s Catholic Primary School in Bedhampton, and Holy Mole-y, named by Jessica from Horndean Technology College, will begin tunnelling “imminently”.

Andy Turner, the director of Ofwat, said: “Over the coming five to 25 years, we expect to see a wave of new major water infrastructure delivered across England, and this is where the major water infrastructure programme comes in.

“It’s the nation’s pipeline of around 30 large scale water infrastructure projects. which are designed to secure England’s long term water resilience, and it brings together reservoirs like Havant Thicket, as well as water recycling schemes, desalination plants, and water transfer projects.”

The tunnelling work will take place over the next three years, with the pipelines due to be complete by 2029. Over seven kilometres of pipeline will be installed , and once complete, they will be able to transport 40 million litres of water per day to the reservoir. Recent predictions from Portsmouth Water put the finish date of the current reservoir project in 2034, due to weather related delays. Once the construction stage of the project is completed, the reservoir is expected to take three years to fill.

It was also previously reported by The News that the cost of the project will double from the original budget, to over £800million, due to ground work issues. Over £125.9m of the increased funding from Ofwat is as a result of the plans to add recycled waste water to it via a new treatment centre which would be created at Budds Farm in Havant and which would require an additional pipeline.

• When complete, the Havant Thicket Reservoir will be the first major new UK reservoir built in over 30 years and enable it to supply drinking water to both Portsmouth Water and Southern Water customers as needed.
• Once completed, the reservoir will hold up to 8.7 billion litres of water and reach a depth of 22.1 metres at its deepest point.
• The reservoir site will also feature footpaths for walking, as well as routes for cycling and horse riding, facilities for bird watching, picnic and play areas and car parking. There will be a visitor centre with a café, toilets and space for community and education activities.
• The project includes separate off-site environmental works involving improvements to Southleigh Forest, converting 80 hectares of local agricultural land into woodland, wood pasture and grassland, and a capital grants scheme for local environmental projects.
• Micro-tunnelling will be used to build the majority of the reservoir pipelines, with two ‘open cut’ sections, where a trench will be dug to put the pipelines in and cover them up again.
• One pipeline will be used to carry surplus spring water to the reservoir in winter, where it will be stored. The other pipeline will enable water to be taken out for supply to customers during a drought or emergency situation.
• In the future, the pipelines could also carry purified recycled water, if Southern Water receives approval for its controversial Hampshire Water Transfer and Water Recycling Project.
• The reservoir itself is being constructed by Future Water MJJV Ltd, a joint venture between leading civil engineering contractors Mackley and Jones Bros, with over 150 years of combined experience in complex civil engineering projects.