Commentary on provisions of the Act Section 2: Financial transparency requirements
This section inserts provisions into the Water Industry Act 1991 ("the 1991 Act") that require Ofwat to secure publication by each water company prominently on its website an overview of its financial position at least once a year (new section 35E).
	A company’s "financial position" includes details of the share capital and debt used to fund its operations. The purpose of the provision is to ensure that the public have easy access to a concise and intelligible overview of a company’s financial position.
	Ofwat may either exercise its appointment powers or issue rules in order to impose the necessary requirements on companies. The precise nature of the information to be included in the overview and the format in which it is to be published will be decided by Ofwat.