Nine To Noon Future of water services warning
Mar 1, 2026
Raveen Jadaram, former Watercare CEO and current chair of the Infrastructure Commission and water regulator Taumata Arawai, offers a sober take on upcoming water reforms. He warns that many small entities may lack scale and governance skills. He calls for boards with public-health and asset expertise. He urges shared systems, stronger capacity for investment, and a measured regulatory approach.
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Scale Problem Threatens New Water Entities
- New water entities face a critical scale problem because 44 council-controlled organisations are tiny compared with Watercare.
- Raveen Jadaram warns small scale raises governance, asset stewardship and capital delivery complexity that boards must understand.
Water Boards Need Technical and Regulatory Expertise
- Running water and wastewater is technically complex and combines public health, regulatory, asset and finance demands.
- Jadaram lists required board skills: public health risk mindset, regulatory knowledge, asset lifecycle and infrastructure finance competence.
Prioritise Operational Readiness Over Setup
- Do not waste time and money on administrative setup that distracts from delivering services.
- Jadaram advises new CCOs to prioritise operational readiness over corporate formation and use the legislative pathway to scale capability.