Thames Water investors to pump in £750 million of funding

INVESTORS in troubled UK utility Thames Water have agreed to put in an extra £750 million (S$1,295 million) of equity funding to help stave off a temporary takeover by the government.

Shareholders will provide the extra cash in the five years to 2030 to help with the company’s turnaround plan. Yet a total of £2.5 billion is needed, and the firm will need to raise more debt to pay for infrastructure investments, keeping gearing under pressure.

The UK’s largest water utility, with 15 million customers in and around London, has been at the centre of a crisis in the sector as rising interest rates cause payments on inflation-linked debt to surge. The industry is under scrutiny as companies have failed to invest enough in infrastructure to keep sewage out of the sea and rivers, and their debt pile has raised questions about the merits of privatisation.

“The additional investment announced today is the largest equity support package ever seen in the UK water sector,” chairman Ian Marchant said on Monday (Jul 10) in a statement. “Thames Water continues to maintain a strong liquidity position, including £4.4 billion of cash and committed funding,” it said.

The utility has held talks with government officials and regulators over contingency plans including a possible temporary nationalisation.

Net financing costs climbed by 24 per cent in a year due to increased borrowing to fund investments and the impact of inflation, which drove up its index-linked debt. Statutory net debt has jumped to almost £14 billion, an increase of more than £1 billion year on year. Gearing fell to 77.4 per cent, according to the company.

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The results come almost two weeks after chief executive officer Sarah Bentley abruptly quit. Two days later, city veteran Adrian Montague was appointed chairman. Lawmakers are also due to question present and former executives – along with representatives of the regulator Ofwat – over the firm’s financial resilience on Jul 12. BLOOMBERG