Why AMP8 needs a new mindset

Published: 13 October 2026

Water companies are facing huge pressure to improve environmental performance, strengthen resilience, maintain ageing infrastructure, and deliver better outcomes for customers. That's why the focus for AMP8 has been on delivering significant investment programmes, but delivery of all this is no longer enough.

Ofwat are increasingly wanting to understand what has been done, why it was done, how risks were managed, and how decisions were reached. The water companies that will come out best will be those that can demonstrate they were in control throughout the entire process, with a clear evidence trail from asset need to investment decisions and delivery outcomes.

In this environment, quality assurance, governance and technical assurance are essential tools for building confidence and credibility. Water companies need to understand which assets present the greatest risk, where investment will deliver best value, and how interventions support long-term outcomes. Just as importantly, they need to be able to defend those decisions.

Deliverability isn't the same as delivery

Completing a project is only part of the story but deliverability means being able to demonstrate that a project was properly prioritised, justified, managed and assured throughout its lifecycle.

Every inspection, audit, engineering assessment and quality check contributes to the evidence needed to answer fundamental questions:

Why was the work required?
Why was investment prioritised?
How were risks managed?
What evidence supports the chosen approach?

The organisations that do well during AMP8 will have that evidence front and centre every day.

The foundations of PR29 are being built today

While AMP8 remains the immediate priority, the foundations of PR29 are already being laid.

Future investment plans will be judged on ambition and the credibility of previous delivery. Regulators want evidence that organisations understood their assets, managed risks effectively, and invested in a controlled and transparent way.

Water companies that successfully establish a strong traceability and governance throughout AMP8 will be far better placed when future investment decisions come under review.

The success in AMP8 won't be measured exclusively on what has been delivered; it will be measured by how confidently you can show you understood your assets, made the right decisions, and remained in control throughout the entire process.

The QEM advantage

For decades, we have helped operators of critical infrastructure create the visibility, assurance and evidence needed to make informed decisions about their assets. We work in highly regulated sectors where governance, safety, compliance and technical integrity are essential to operational success.

Our experience has been built in asset-intensive industries where organisations are expected to justify investment, manage risk and maintain robust evidence to support decision making.

The pressures water companies face in AMP8 aren't unique to water. The utilities industry has long operated under intense regulatory scrutiny, where every investment decision has to be justified and every intervention evidenced. The approaches we've developed in those environments, from can be applied directly to the challenges the water sector is facing now.

We bring specialist expertise in assurance, governance and evidence frameworks that help organisations demonstrate control and make better asset decisions.

Now, as part of the Adler & Allan Group, we're applying that expertise to help water companies navigate AMP8 and prepare for the challenges that will shape PR29.

Being part of the Group strengthens our abilities to support the water sector. Together, we combine engineering assurance, asset knowledge, environmental expertise, and practical infrastructure experience across water, energy and industrial markets. That cross-sector perspective helps us bring proven approaches to challenges like asset resilience, ageing infrastructure, compliance, risk management, and investment prioritisation.

We can provide the assurance, visibility and evidence that enable water companies to demonstrate delivery credibility today while building a stronger foundation for PR29 tomorrow.

To find out how we can support your AMP8 programme and help you build the evidence base for PR29, speak to our experts.