HOFOR, which supplies Copenhagen's drinking water, ended 2025 with a supply buffer of 11%, against the 20-30% it wants. In its May 2025 analysis the utility said it needs to produce 12 million cubic metres a year more to be sure of supplying everyone in 2040.
Lost wells
Contamination has cut production at 8 of HOFOR's about 50 wellfields. At Solhøj, its largest, the utility has pumped 2 million cubic metres a year less than its 5 million cubic metre permit since 2021, after PFAS was found. Household use is not unusually high: Copenhagen residents used 98 litres a day in 2025, against a national average of 97 litres in 2024.
A summer close to the limit
On 25 June 2026 HOFOR asked nearly one million customers to save water, saying it was producing at full capacity. During the 2026 heatwave, weekly demand reached its highest level in over 20 years, and in September HOFOR's planning chief said the utility could not produce enough to meet demand.
Fixes take years
The largest recoverable volume identified is at Solhøj, once an activated-carbon stage is added at the Thorsbro waterworks; consultancy contracts worth DKK 25.7 million were awarded on 10 January 2025. Three new boreholes in Brøndby are expected to add about 170,000 cubic metres a year from 2027. A new waterworks at Regnemark is expected to supply from 2028.
Protection is slower still
After several decades of voluntary agreements, under one-fifth of the groundwater-forming areas for HOFOR's regional waterworks are protected. A government bill banning pesticides on vulnerable groundwater areas is planned for December 2026, but DTU experts warn that groundwater used for drinking water is already over 30 years old.
Where new supply could come from, which national rules will decide the outlook, how exposed large users are to restrictions and what to watch through 2029 are set out in the report. The full report, Water Security and Supply Outlook in Copenhagen, is available for USD 249. For a free overview, see Copenhagen City Snapshot.