Waste water — frequently asked questions

How does daily pricing work?

The introduction of daily pricing means that your water usage charges will be calculated on an average daily basis, instead of the previous cumulative year-to-date calculation.

For standard residential customers, water will be charged at $1.85 per kilolitre for up to 548 litres per day (0.548 kilolitres) and $3.70 per kilolitre for subsequent daily usage.

Each quarterly bill will divide a property’s water usage by the number of days in the billing cycle. Customers who use less than 548 litres of water per day on average during the billing cycle will pay only the lower price for their water. The higher price will be charged for any usage that exceeds 548 litres per day.

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Why introduce daily pricing?

Daily pricing has already been adopted in a number of Australian cities.

The key advantage is that the price of water will not progressively increase as your annual aggregate water consumption increases over the year.

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Will I pay more?

Daily pricing itself will not increase the average annual water bill in the ACT. Under daily pricing, your highest bill will be for the quarter with the highest consumption, allowing you to better manage your water use.

The price of water will rise from 1 July 2008, but this is primarily the result of major measures being undertaken by ACTEW to provide water security for the region.

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Water Abstraction Charge and Utilities Network Facilities Tax

For the period prior to 1 July 2008, the Water Abstraction Charge and the Utilities Network Facilities Tax are separately itemised on your water and sewerage bill. Beginning 1 July 2008 they will, like all other costs, be included in the total price.

The ACT Government charges ACTEW the water abstraction charge and from 1 July 2008 the rate is 51 cents per kilolitre on the amount of water abstracted.

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