Pelican Business Services
Pelican Business Services is a UK BPO joint venture of Bristol Water and Wessex Water providing meter reading, billing, collections, and customer experience services to water utilities across South West England, employing 250+ people from its Nailsea headquarters.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2001
- HeadquartersNailsea, United Kingdom
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Pelican Business Services does
Pelican Business Services (legal name: Bristol Wessex Billing Services Limited) is a UK business process outsourcing provider founded in 2001 and headquartered in Nailsea near Bristol. It was established as an equally-owned joint venture between Bristol Water (trading name of South West Water Limited) and Wessex Water Limited to consolidate their metering, billing, collections, and non-operational customer service functions, and now also serves water2business as a downstream retailer client. Operationally it runs four interconnected service lines — meter reading, billing, collections and debt management, and customer experience management — supporting meter reading across approximately 2.5 million customer properties and billing interactions for around 4 million end-customers in aggregate across the South West of England. Headcount stands at over 250 employees based primarily at the Pelican Towers headquarters, which is currently undergoing refurbishment.
The technology stack is described in functional rather than architectural terms: cloud-based storage and integrated business-service systems underpin meter reading route planning, billing, and customer relationship management, but no proprietary software products, APIs, AI/ML capability, or technology platform is documented. Distribution is exclusively direct B2B, with revenue generated through long-term service contracts negotiated individually with water-utility clients. The go-to-market motion relies on the structural embeddedness of the two JV parents and incremental business development targeting other UK water and wastewater management companies. Pelican's positioning rests on people-led customer service — evidenced by Trustpilot 4.61/5, multiple Ofwat C-MeX top-three placements for its parent utilities in 2024/25, and a sustained run of regional contact-centre and workplace-culture awards — rather than on technology differentiation. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and no external funding, M&A, or ownership changes are indicated.
Pelican Business Services firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Pelican Business Services
- Legal name
- Bristol Wessex Billing Services Limited
- Website
- https://pelican.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2001
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Pelican Business Services is a UK BPO joint venture of Bristol Water and Wessex Water providing meter reading, billing, collections, and customer experience services to water utilities across South West England, employing 250+ people from its Nailsea headquarters.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Pelican Business Services industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Utility Business Process Outsourcing
- NAICS
- Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (221310)
- SIC
- Water Supply (4941), Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Order-to-Cash (O2C) Operations (Order Admin, Credit, Invoicing, Collections Handoff) (BPAAAGAK)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Digital Self-Service & Customer Portals (web/mobile, e-bill, notifications, consumption dashboards) (EUANAIAI)
Keywords
Where Pelican Business Services is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Nailsea
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Pelican Business Services business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Business Process Outsourcing: Pelican provides outsourced business services including meter reading, billing, and collections to water utilities. The company was established by Bristol Water and Wessex Water to manage their metering, billing, and collection operations, serving as the point of contact for non-operational customer enquiries. Revenue is generated through service contracts with water companies.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels6 records
Pelican Business Services product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Pelican Business Services is an integrated business process outsourcing provider to water utilities, delivering field-based meter reading, accurate and timely billing, collections and debt management, and end-to-end customer experience management across multiple contact channels. Established in 2001 as a joint venture by Bristol Water and Wessex Water, the company serves approximately 2.5 million customer accounts across the South West of England and supports retailer clients such as water2business.
Product overview
Pelican Business Services operates as an integrated business services provider offering a unified portfolio of services to water utilities. The core offering consists of four interconnected service lines: Meter Reading Services (field-based meter reading with optimized routing for 2.5 million customers), Billing Services (accurate and timely billing with consolidated multi-site billing for businesses), Collections and Debt Management (integrated debt management solutions), and Customer Experience Management (end-to-end customer contact services across multiple channels). The company was established as a joint venture by Bristol Water and Wessex Water in 2001 to manage metering, billing, and collection operations, and now also serves water2business as a retailer client. All services are delivered through a unified operational model with a focus on award-winning customer service performance.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Meter Reading Services Field-based meter reading services for residential and commercial water customers, including route optimisation to minimise carbon emissions when visiting 2.5 million customer properties across the South West of England.
- Billing Services Accurate and timely billing for water and wastewater services, serving both residential and business customers, with consolidated multi-site billing for business customers.
- Collections and Debt Management Debt management and collections services provided as part of Pelican's integrated business solutions to support water utility clients in achieving their strategic goals.
- Customer Experience Management End-to-end customer experience services including handling non-operational customer enquiries, complaint resolution, and award-winning customer service across multiple contact channels for water utility clients.
Quantifiable outcome
- 900,000 customers helped in 2024/25
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Pelican Business Services
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Pelican Business Services technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Pelican Business Services partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Bristol WatercoreBristol Water is a water supply company providing drinking water to 1.2 million people in a 2,400 square kilometre area centred on Bristol. Pelican was established by Bristol Water (alongside Wessex Water) to manage all their metering, billing, and collection operations.
- Wessex WatercoreWessex Water is a regional water and sewerage business serving 2.8 million customers across the south west of England. Pelican was established by Wessex Water (alongside Bristol Water) to manage their metering, billing, and collection operations. Wessex Water has topped water industry customer service league tables for many years.
- water2businessminorwater2business is a leading retailer of water and wastewater management solutions to businesses and organisations across England and Scotland, providing water and wastewater efficiency advice and flexible billing for multiple sites.
- Armed Forces CovenantminorThe Armed Forces Covenant focuses on providing members of the armed forces with equal access to starting a new career. Applicants who have previously served in the armed forces and meet minimum requirements for a job will automatically be invited for an interview.
- Disability Confident EmployerminorAs a Disability Confident Employer, Pelican guarantees a job interview to any applicant who declares they have a disability, as long as they meet the minimum requirements for the role. The company is committed to ensuring recruitment is inclusive and accessible.
- National Autistic SocietyminorPartnership through the Autism at Work programme helps Pelican understand, embrace and increase neurodiversity. The programme allows roles to be advertised on the society's network and provides tailored support to candidates with autism, including manager and team training.
- Bristol Women in Business CharterminorCommitment to ensuring gender equality is an ongoing focus. Analysis of approach to gender equality has helped make better decisions in recruitment, retention, and engagement. Collaboration with other Charter members allows sharing of ideas and celebrating achievements.
- Women's Work LabminorWorking with Women's Work Lab to offer work placements designed to build confidence and skills to support women who are looking to get back into employment.
- Women's Utilities Network (WUN)minorMembers of WUN providing access to networking events, mentoring, webinars, careers events, podcasts, and opportunities for personal development for women in the utilities sector.
- Talk ClubminorTalk Club is a UK male mental health organisation. Pelican embraces Talk Club's 'How are you? Out of 10?' approach in everyday conversation. Pitch-side advertising board at Nailsea United FC promotes the relationship with Talk Club.
- Nailsea United FCminorLocal sports club sponsorship, with new pitch-side advertising board promoting relationship with Talk Club.
- Nailsea & Backwell Rugby ClubminorLocal sports club sponsorship. Pelican is the lead sponsors of the club's Under 13s match day kit this season.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Pelican Business Services competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Capita: Large UK-listed outsourcing and BPO group providing customer services, billing and collections across regulated utilities including water. Directly comparable as a multi-vertical BPO serving regulated clients, though at much broader scale than Pelican.
- Serco: Global public-services outsourcer with UK regulated-utility front-office and back-office contracts. Comparable as a large-scale BPO delivering operational services to government and utility clients under long-term contracts.
- Sodexo (UK): Global services group with UK facilities management and on-site service operations, including in regulated and utility environments. Comparable as a people-intensive outsourced service provider for institutional clients.
- Arvato (Bertelsmann): International BPO providing customer service, billing and collections — including dedicated utility-sector programmes. Directly comparable in CRM, collections and O2C execution for regulated clients.
- Itron (UK Metering): Global metering technology and managed services vendor with significant UK water utility footprint in AMI and meter data management. Comparable as a meter-reading and data-service provider to water utilities.
Direct peers
- IMServ: European provider of meter reading, data collection and managed services for energy and water utilities. Closely comparable on the meter-reading and meter-data-management service line that is core to Pelican's offering.
- Anglian Water (Customer Services operations): Large UK water utility operating in-house meter reading, billing and customer service at similar scale to Pelican's parents. Directly comparable function-by-function as a captive customer-service operation for a UK water company.
- Severn Trent (Customer Services): Major UK water utility with large in-house billing, collections and customer-experience operations that compete with Pelican for outsourced utility CX mandates. Comparable as a scaled in-house equivalent of Pelican's operating model.
- Water Plus: UK business water retailer providing water and wastewater billing services to commercial customers across England and Scotland. Comparable as a non-household water retail/billing entity operating in the same end-market as water2business (Pelican's third-party client).
Emerging players
- Vertex (Utilities): Provider of utility billing and tax-determination software used by water and energy companies. Comparable as a billing-platform vendor that competes for the same wallet share of utility O2C functions Pelican operates.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Pelican Business Services social profiles
Digital presencePelican Business Services financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Pelican Business Services leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Pelican Business Services funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Pelican Business Services M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Pelican Business Services
What does Pelican Business Services do?
Pelican Business Services is an integrated business process outsourcing provider to water utilities, delivering field-based meter reading, accurate and timely billing, collections and debt management, and end-to-end customer experience management across multiple contact channels. Established in 2001 as a joint venture by Bristol Water and Wessex Water, the company serves approximately 2.5 million customer accounts across the South West of England and supports retailer clients such as water2business.
Is Pelican Business Services a public or private company?
Pelican Business Services is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Pelican Business Services founded?
Pelican Business Services was founded in 2001. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Pelican Business Services based?
Pelican Business Services is headquartered in Nailsea, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Pelican Business Services make money?
One revenue line is on record: business Process Outsourcing.
Who are Pelican Business Services's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Capita, Serco, Sodexo (UK), Arvato (Bertelsmann) and Itron (UK Metering). Direct peers are IMServ, Anglian Water (Customer Services operations), Severn Trent (Customer Services) and Water Plus. Vertex (Utilities) is listed as an emerging player.
Does Pelican Business Services have an API?
No public API is recorded for Pelican Business Services.
What industry is Pelican Business Services in?
Pelican Business Services's product category is Utility Business Process Outsourcing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAAAGAK, Order-to-Cash (O2C) Operations (Order Admin, Credit, Invoicing, Collections Handoff), with a secondary code of EUANAIAI, Digital Self-Service & Customer Portals (web/mobile, e-bill, notifications, consumption dashboards). Its NAICS code is 22131 and its SIC code is 4941.