Increases in water charges for Auckland consumers will be halved this year under the Watercare Charter, Local Government Minister, Simon Watts, has declared.
The Charter, which has now been passed into law, is part of the financial arrangement for Watercare developed last year by Auckland Council with the support of the Government under Local Water Done Well.
“Last year, the Government quickly progressed legislation to restore local control of water assets, overturning Labour’s Three Water reforms which were expensive and creating problems across the country. This included putting in place preliminary arrangements for the transition to safe, resilient, reliable, environmentally sound, and customer responsive water services at the least cost,” Mr Watts says.
“The charter will help keep Auckland’s water services affordable, saving households about $899 million over four years while ensuring improved service quality and record infrastructure investment averaging $1.3 billion a year to unlock housing growth in Auckland.
“By easing this financial pressure, Aucklanders can keep more money in their household budgets, allowing them to spend it on other essential expenses such as groceries and healthcare.”
Under Auckland Council’s draft 2024-2034 long-term plan (LTP), Watercare charges for drinking water and wastewater connected residential consumers would have risen by an average of 14.6% on 1 July 2025. Under the charter, the increase will be 7.2%. This follows last year’s increase, also of 7.2% compared with the 25.8% increase proposed in the draft LTP for 1 July 2024.
Auckland Minister, Simeon Brown said the Government was committed to delivering affordable water charges for Aucklanders through the Local Water Done Well solution for Watercare, while ensuring that there is ongoing investment in critical infrastructure maintenance and growth.
“The high cost of living remains a top concern for Aucklanders, and our Government is committed to reducing unnecessary charges and taxes to provide relief. The Government’s Local Water Done Well solution for Watercare has prevented large increases in Aucklanders’ water rates while ensuring we keep investing in the water infrastructure our city will need,” Mr Brown says.
Mr Watts says the charter will ensure Watercare faces incentives to invest in replacing and upgrading assets, improve efficiency, and provide water services at a quality that reflects consumer expectations.
“Importantly, it means that the benefits of efficiency improvement will be shared with consumers,” he said.
“The Commission’s regulatory oversight of Watercare means greater transparency and accountability regarding water and wastewater network performance, customer service, and cost to consumers.
“Infrastructure is vital for our cities to thrive, and because this Government listened and worked with Auckland Council, we delivered a solution that ensures Watercare has the flexibility and revenue certainty to fund future water infrastructure projects.
“This approach also frees up Auckland Council’s own balance sheet to support it to invest in other critical infrastructure, supporting growth across the city.”
