Businesses across England consume 2.6 billion litres of water daily from the public supply, which includes both potable and non-potable water. Mosl, the organisation operating England's business water market, states that businesses are responsible for about 30% of public supply use, with two-thirds of their consumption located in water-stressed regions.
This comes as millions of households face hosepipe bans and three-quarters of the country is in drought. Less than 1% of businesses use more water than the daily needs of 10 million people.
Tracking industrial water use is reportedly difficult, with regulators expressing frustration over a lack of data and what they describe as “commercial secrecy.” The water sector also states that this lack of data prevents effective planning for growth industries.
Major users of the public water supply include oil refineries, chemical plants, and paper mills. Some of these entities are not required to reduce their consumption. Mosl cited the ExxonMobil Esso refinery at Fawley, Southampton, as the largest user of public water supply on its map, although the site includes other operators. ExxonMobil has disputed Mosl's figures, stating its water use is commercially confidential.
A spokesperson for Mosl indicated that their data highlights both opportunities and regulatory barriers to incentivising businesses to use less water. Mosl's chief executive, Sarah McMath, told a House of Lords committee that Mosl must negotiate bespoke agreements to share data with government departments like Defra or the Environment Agency.
The Environment Agency and Ofwat are advocating for mandatory reporting of current and projected water use across all sectors to enhance water security. Water UK, a trade body, argues that current assumptions for business water consumption reductions are unrealistic given growing demand from new homes, data centres, and hydrogen production.