Who owns Thames Water, how much money does it owe and what might happen next?
1 year, 6 months ago

Who owns Thames Water, how much money does it owe and what might happen next?

The Independent  

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. As of last September, Thames Water owed around £13.8 billion to its lenders, a figure that was around £840 million higher than six months earlier. In December 2005, before Macquarie bought the utility, Thames Water’s net debt was just £2.4 billion. As of last March, around £5.6 billion of Thames Water’s debt was at fixed interest rates, but around £7.7 billion of it was linked to retail price index inflation. However, Thames Water had the highest gearing level last year and the largest debt pile out of the five companies.

Water Companies Company Billion Thames Water Thames Its Debt Ofwat Macquarie Debt Pile  thames  ofwat  company  owe  special  water  billion  debt  pile  waters  does  companies  owns  happen  money

History of this topic

How water firms could rinse the taxpayer
3 weeks ago

How water firms could rinse the taxpayer

The Independent  

It was probably not the best day for the water industry regulator to announce that average bills in England and Wales will increase by 36 per cent over the next five years. Its debts of around £18bn are simply too large to service without swingeing increases in bills and possible taxpayer assistance – subsidies that will end up in the …

Thames Water slapped with £18m fine by Ofwat for dishing out 'unjustified' dividends
3 weeks ago

Thames Water slapped with £18m fine by Ofwat for dishing out 'unjustified' dividends

Daily Mail  

Thames Water has been handed an £18.2million fine after regulator Ofwat used powers to crack down on firms paying 'unjustified' dividends for the first time. The regulator said Thames Water made interim dividend payouts totalling £37.5million to its holding company, Thames Water Utilities Holdings Limited, in October last year and further payouts of about £158.3million in March 2024. The ruling …

Creditors in High Court row over Thames Water restructuring plans
3 weeks, 2 days ago

Creditors in High Court row over Thames Water restructuring plans

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. But this is opposed by a secondary group of …

Thames Water boss defends bonuses and repeats calls for steep bills hikes
4 weeks, 2 days ago

Thames Water boss defends bonuses and repeats calls for steep bills hikes

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Regulator Ofwat revealed in November that Thames Water was …

Thames Water is a leaky pipe – so why are bidders fighting to buy it?
1 month ago

Thames Water is a leaky pipe – so why are bidders fighting to buy it?

The Independent  

It’s not Thames Water anymore and it hasn’t been that for quite some time; it’s Thames Wat-er-mess. The tragedy of this now-zombie company – which has warned that it will run out of cash sometime next year – is that things like leaks, customer service and the untreated sewage that keeps getting pumped into the environment aren’t anywhere near the …

Thames Water receives buyout offer from investment group Covalis Capital
1 month ago

Thames Water receives buyout offer from investment group Covalis Capital

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Investment firm Covalis Capital has …

Thames Water: Fears of more bill hikes as £38bn bill revealed
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Thames Water: Fears of more bill hikes as £38bn bill revealed

The Independent  

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. A spokesperson for Thames Water said: “We take a rigorous approach to financial discipline …

Thames Water: Why does the struggling water firm need emergency funding?
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Thames Water: Why does the struggling water firm need emergency funding?

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thames Water has said it …

Starmer plots to raise bills to fund Thames Water bailout
3 months, 3 weeks ago

Starmer plots to raise bills to fund Thames Water bailout

The Telegraph  

Sir Keir Starmer is planning to allow water bills across the country to be raised to pay for a Government bailout of Thames Water. New legislation will let the Government charge all water companies the full £10 billion cost if ministers decide to take over the struggling company. Thames Water has more than £15 billion of debt, and said in …

Thames Water debt emergency seized on by US hedge funds
4 months ago

Thames Water debt emergency seized on by US hedge funds

The Telegraph  

A combative Wall Street hedge fund is positioned to play a central role in the future of Thames Water after scooping up the company’s loans at knockdown prices. New York-based Elliott Management is among a pack of aggressive US players to have hoovered up Thames Water debt at steep discounts in an attempt to capitalise on the financial uncertainty engulfing …

Thames Water creditors seek peace deal to avoid threat of nationalisation
4 months ago

Thames Water creditors seek peace deal to avoid threat of nationalisation

The Telegraph  

Creditors to Thames Water are attempting to broker a peace deal between the beleaguered supplier and regulator Ofwat amid fears that a breakdown in relations between the two sides risks speeding up the company’s demise. Sources involved in attempts to stop Thames Water being nationalised are warning privately that it may prove impossible to draw up a rescue deal unless …

Thames Water Creditor Abrdn Sees Bond Losses of Up to 20%
5 months, 3 weeks ago

Thames Water Creditor Abrdn Sees Bond Losses of Up to 20%

Live Mint  

-- One of Thames Water Ltd.’s key bondholders says a turnaround of the company envisioned by the government regulator has raised the likelihood of significant losses on its top-ranked securities. Luke Hickmore, investment director at Abrdn Investment Management Ltd., said it will be harder for the UK’s biggest water and sewage company to attract a new buyer without imposing losses …

Thames Water confirms £158m dividends despite debt and sewage leaks anger
6 months ago

Thames Water confirms £158m dividends despite debt and sewage leaks anger

The Independent  

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thames Water has confirmed it paid two fresh dividends worth …

Thames Water is worthless, says biggest investor
7 months, 3 weeks ago

Thames Water is worthless, says biggest investor

The Telegraph  

Thames Water’s biggest investor has slashed the value of its stake in the company to zero in a move that renders the troubled supplier effectively worthless, The Telegraph can disclose. The Canadian pension fund Omers said it has been forced into a “full write down” of its investment in Thames, a day after withdrawing its representative from the utility company’s …

Thames Water seeks 45pc bill rise as it piles pressure on Ofwat
8 months, 2 weeks ago

Thames Water seeks 45pc bill rise as it piles pressure on Ofwat

The Telegraph  

It emerged on Monday that feared US hedge fund Elliott, owner of Waterstones, has been buying up debt in Thames Water in a bid to profit from its recent turmoil, the Financial Times reported. The need for increased revenues at Thames Water has been made increasingly acute after shareholders, such as China’s sovereign wealth fund, cut off funding last month. …

Raising bills to pay for Thames Water failures ‘utterly outrageous’, says Hunt
8 months, 4 weeks ago

Raising bills to pay for Thames Water failures ‘utterly outrageous’, says Hunt

The Telegraph  

Jeremy Hunt has said that it would be “utterly outrageous” for Ofwat to grant Thames Water’s demands for higher household bills as it faces potential insolvency. The Chancellor said shareholders in the embattled utility company had “an obligation to sort out the mess”, when asked whether they had a duty to inject more cash into the business. Speaking at a …

Thames Water plots break-up as it scrambles to avoid nationalisation
9 months ago

Thames Water plots break-up as it scrambles to avoid nationalisation

The Telegraph  

Thames Water is exploring a radical break-up plan as the threat of nationalisation moves closer. A carve-up of the company is among several options being studied by executives as Thames attempts to navigate a severe cash crunch that could precipitate its collapse. Under the proposals being looked at, Thames Water, which serves 16 million customers, could be split into two …

Chinese state-owned banks among lenders Thames Water owes money to – reports
9 months ago

Chinese state-owned banks among lenders Thames Water owes money to – reports

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Two Chinese state-owned banks and …

Thames Water under threat of nationalisation as shareholders refuse to inject £500m lifeline
9 months, 1 week ago

Thames Water under threat of nationalisation as shareholders refuse to inject £500m lifeline

The Independent  

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Thames Water’s sewage treatment works have come under scrutiny The …

Thames Water: Who owns the struggling water service – and could it be nationalised?
9 months, 1 week ago

Thames Water: Who owns the struggling water service – and could it be nationalised?

The Independent  

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. If Thames Water’s financial issues cause it to become unable to deliver its services …

Thames Water dividend payouts in spotlight after shareholders pull funding
9 months, 1 week ago

Thames Water dividend payouts in spotlight after shareholders pull funding

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The UK’s largest water company …

Thames Water asked to explain how dividend payment does not break Ofwat rules
1 year, 1 month ago

Thames Water asked to explain how dividend payment does not break Ofwat rules

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Ofwat has asked Thames Water …

Thames Water averts nationalisation threat with £750m funding lifeline
1 year, 5 months ago

Thames Water averts nationalisation threat with £750m funding lifeline

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Britain’s biggest water supplier said the initial funding agreement …

Great British water crisis: From Thatcher’s pipe dream to busted flush
1 year, 6 months ago

Great British water crisis: From Thatcher’s pipe dream to busted flush

The Independent  

Back in the late 1980s, Mrs Thatcher was in her pomp. Michael Howard, the minister in charge of flogging water, pledged the companies would be embarking upon “the biggest programme of sustained investment in their history”. Currently, my eldest son lives in Whitstable, in Kent, and he can’t swim in the sea – part of his reason for living there …

Thames Water crisis explained as utility giant serving 15m people faces collapse
1 year, 6 months ago

Thames Water crisis explained as utility giant serving 15m people faces collapse

The Independent  

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. He told Sky News: “Absolutely nothing is going to happen …

Thames Water has ‘secure and committed’ funding, Government insists
1 year, 6 months ago

Thames Water has ‘secure and committed’ funding, Government insists

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The Government has doubled down …

Emergency plans ‘drawn up for Thames Water collapse’ as water firm racks up £14bn debt
1 year, 6 months ago

Emergency plans ‘drawn up for Thames Water collapse’ as water firm racks up £14bn debt

The Independent  

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Sarah Bentley was paid £1.6mn despite giving up bonus Environment minister Rebecca Pow told …

Thames Water boss quits amid race to raise £1bn from investors
1 year, 6 months ago

Thames Water boss quits amid race to raise £1bn from investors

The Telegraph  

The boss of Thames Water has quit as the company races to raise £1bn from its shareholders. Sarah Bentley’s surprise departure comes amid long-running talks between the owners of Britain’s biggest water company about how to pay for additional investment in the company. Ms Bentley stepped down just weeks after saying she was part of a “relatively new team” trying …

Thames Water taps investors for cash as it boosts overhaul plans
2 years, 6 months ago

Thames Water taps investors for cash as it boosts overhaul plans

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thames Water is making a …

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