Local Water Done Well

Will Peet (Chair)

Will is a Wellington-based independent director and advisor with deep experience in infrastructure, transport, technology, and public sector governance. A civil engineer, Will's career includes leadership roles as CEO of ONTRACK and Chief Operating Officer of the New Zealand Defence Force.

Currently, Will chairs Site Safe, is a director of Public Trust, a member of the Ministry of Education Risk and Assurance board, and serves as an external member on major project governance groups for a number of public sector organisations, including as independent chair of Te Wai Takamori o Te Awa Kairangi / Riverlink. Will is a Fellow of Engineering New Zealand, Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, and Member of the Institute of Directors.

Jon Lamonte

Jon has extensive experience in water services leadership, including being a former CEO of Watercare, and the Auckland/Northland Water Services Entity. He was also CEO of Sydney Metro, Transport for Greater Manchester, and Tube Lines Ltd (London).

Jon is a Chartered Director and Fellow of the Institute of Directors, a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport.

Jon was also formerly an Air Vice-Marshal in the Royal Air Force, with director-level positions in defence procurement, logistics, and strategy.

Jon is currently a director on the Board of Waikato Waters Ltd.

Elena Trout

Elena has extensive experience as a company director and professional civil engineer who has held a number of leadership positions in the transport, infrastructure and energy sectors over the past 30 years.

Elena is currently an independent director or chair of several boards including Citycare, Callaghan Innovation, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, Local Government Funding Agency (LGFA), WorkSafe, and has recently retired from Contact Energy. She has held significant roles as an independent chair and advisor to both central and local government.

Elena is currently the chair of the Board of Waikato Waters Ltd.

Elena is a Fellow of the Institute of Directors and a past president and distinguished Fellow of Engineering NZ.

Adrian Wimmers

Adrian is a Wellington-based commercial and infrastructure advisor and public sector governance leader with more than 30 years’ professional experience across high-value infrastructure investment, complex commercial transactions and major public sector reforms.

Adrian’s career has included senior executive roles at KPMG, the New Zealand Treasury’s Crown Company Monitoring Advisory Unit and as an Acting General Manager at the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission. He has held governance roles with multiple departmental advisory boards and not-for-profit organisations including the Komiti Pasifika at Victoria University of Wellington and is currently Deputy Chair of the Fale Malae Trust.

Adrian is a Member of the Institute of Directors and CPA (Aust).

• Tiaki Wai Metro Water will own and operate drinking water, wastewater, and piped stormwater services for approximately 432,000 people across the Wellington metropolitan area from 1 July 2026. It will absorb the current provider, Wellington Water.
• It will be better set up to deliver improved services for communities, with more funding options, a regional focus and new leadership and governance arrangements.
• Improved services means more reliable water supply, reduced leaks, outages and unplanned disruptions and cleaner harbours and waterways.
• It will in time have a direct relationship with customers when they have a question or report a fault, rather than via councils.
• The region’s water assets, with a replacement value of almost $18 billion, will remain in public ownership because Tiaki Wai Metro Water is owned by five shareholding councils.
• Investment of about $25 billion will be required over 30 years, to catch up on decades of under-investment, address growth, meet new regulatory standards and deliver reliable and environmentally sustainable water services.
• Customers will pay directly for water services, instead of indirectly through rates. For the first financial year (2026/27) it is expected that Tiaki Wai Metro Water will operate in line with the budgets set in councils’ Long Term Plans. This means in the first year households can expect water charges to be in line with what they would have paid as part of their rates bill.
• Initially, some functions and support will continue to be provided by councils. This will continue until the necessary IT systems are in place.
• To ensure essential services continue, Tiaki Wai Metro Water will absorb the current operational and support teams from Wellington Water (tier 3 managers and below).

The initial Statement of Expectations, confirmed on 18 December 2025, is one of the key planning mechanisms that the shareholding councils and mana whenua have to influence the priorities and strategic direction for Tiaki Wai.  This is because Tiaki Wai is required by legislation to give effect to the Statement of Expectations.

The Local Government (Water Services) Act 2025 sets out a range of mandatory matters that the Statement of Expectations must address, including outcomes that the shareholders expect Tiaki Wai to achieve by delivering water services. The Statement of Expectations can also address other matters that are important to the partners, such as a requirement to undertake community or customer engagement, and the contents of that engagement.

The preparation of the Statement of Expectations involved  the following process:

1. Input from across all Shareholding Councils, the establishment team and iwi/mana whenua partners.
2. Informed by principles developed and agreed by the Shareholding Councils.
3. Provided to the Board of Tiaki Wai in early November 202, to provide the Board with opportunity to comment.
4. Once comments were received from the Board of Tiaki Wai, the draft Statement of Expectations was refined and then presented to the Partners Committee for consideration.
5. The Partners Committee adopt the final Statement of Expectations and provided it to Tiaki Wai in December 2025.

Read the Statement of Expectations