Three shortlisted for Cumbria water project

7 November 2022


United Utilities has taken has shortlisted three consortia for the Haweswater Aqueduct Resilience Programme (HARP) in Cumbria.

The three joint ventures are:

  • HARP Community Connectors – Acciona, Dragados and Iridium
  • More Water – FCC Construcción, SNC-Lavalin, FCC Aqualia, Webuild and BeMo Tunnelling
  • Strabag Equitix Consortium – Equitix and Strabag

HARP is the largest infrastructure project undertaken by United Utilities since privatisation. It involves replacement of six tunnel sections – approximately 50km – of the 110km pipeline that carries drinking water from Haweswater in Cumbria to Greater Manchester. It also includes connections to existing multiline siphons between the tunnel sections and associated facilities, and the commissioning and maintenance of the works for approximately 25 years.

The design, build, finance and maintenance contract includes construction work for bridges, tunnels, shafts and subways, and tunnelling works. It has an estimated value of £1.75bn (US$2.15bn).

The original aqueduct was completed in the 1950s to increase supplies of water to Manchester and the Pennines from the Lake District.