TypeAgencyParallel NameWellington Water LimitedOther NamesWellington Water Management LtdWellington Water Management LimitedCapacity Infrastructure Services LimitedDate RangeJuly 2003 - June 2026DescriptionWellington Water Ltd was established in July 2003 as a Council Controlled Trading Organisation formed under the terms of the Local Government Act 2002. It was established by Wellington City Council (WCC) and the Hutt City Council (HCC) to co-operatively manage the delivery of Water Services by WCC and HCC.
In Council meetings dated 30 April 2003 (WCC) and 29 April 2003 each Council passed a resolution to enter into an agreement with Capacity for the management of the three waters: water supply, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure services. The two Councils continued to own water services assets, to control the delivery of services and set policies and charges.
Wellington Water Management Ltd was formed 9 July 2003 trading under the name Capacity until 1 July 2009 when it updated it's name to Capacity Infrastructure Services Ltd, and on the 12 September 2014 it then changed its name to Wellington Water Limited.
Operations commenced in April 2004. An internal project to identify, consolidate and implement best practice started in June 2004. Staff from each of the parent councils was transferred into similar roles or were appointed into newly created positions. The new structure was effective from 1 February 2005. Service Level Agreements with both WCC and HCC were established and became effective from July 2004.
Upper Hutt City Council joined as a water services client mid 2008 and in late 2013 they became shareholders alongside Porirua City Council. The name change to Wellington Water Limited was a result of a merger between Capacity Infrastructure Services and Greater Wellington Regional Councils water supply group.
In 2025 the five councils covering the Wellington metropolitan area (Wellington City Council, Hutt City Council, Porirua City Council, Upper Hutt City Council and Greater Wellington Regional Council) confirmed they will establish a new, jointly-owned organisation to deliver water services as part of the Local Water Done Well framework. The new organisation, will take accountability for water services from 1 July 2026.Internal StructuresFirst Board of Directors consisted of: Bryan Jackson, Keith Sutton, 2 councillors from Wellington City Council (Alick Shaw and David Zwartz) and 2 from Hutt City Council (Ray Wallace and John Austad).
As of October 2025 Wellington Water was owned by these six councils:
Wellington City Council
Hutt City Council
Porirua City Council
Upper Hutt City Council
Greater Wellington Regional Council
South Wairarapa District Council
