INSTALLATION of 33,000 water meters in Basingstoke and surrounding areas is proceeding apace, according to utility company South East Water.

The company says its metering programme has reached its 10,000th meter installation milestone.

The programme also includes Sevenoaks, in Kent, and Burgess Hill, in Sussex, and was launched in August.

As part of South East Water’s five-year investment programme, over the next four years, 200,000 water meters will be installed so that 70 per cent of customers will have a meter by 2015. By 2020, that number will rise to 90 per cent.

The wider south-east region has been classed by the Environment Agency as an area of serious water stress.

The metering programme is an important part of South East Water’s plans to make sure there is enough water for both existing and future customers.

Charles Healey, metering manager, said: “We are delighted to have reached our 10,000th meter installation within four months.

“The programme has got off to a good start, and we are working hard to ensure that our customers are well-informed of the changes to the way they pay for their water and that the installation process is efficient.

“Metering is the fairest way for customers to pay for the water they use and research has found that customers on a water meter use 10 per cent less water than those who are unmetered, which is vitally important as the last 12 months have been the driest since 1976 in the south-east region.”