Thames Water Utilities
Limited
Shareholder Funding
Update
28 March 2024
In July 2023 Thames Water Utilities
Limited ('Thames Water') announced that its shareholders had agreed
to provide a further £750 million in new equity funding across the
current regulatory period (AMP7), the first £500 million tranche of
which was anticipated by 31 March 2024.
This funding was subject to
satisfaction of certain conditions, including the preparation of a
business plan that underpins a more focused turnaround that
delivers targeted performance improvements for customers, the
environment and other stakeholders over the next three years and is
supported by appropriate regulatory arrangements.
Since the submission of its PR24
Business Plan on 2 October 2023:
·
Thames Water's Board approved its three-year
turnaround plan and its implementation is underway; and
·
Thames Water has been in dialogue with Ofwat to
seek feedback on its business plan as part of the PR24
process.
Based on the feedback provided by
Ofwat to Thames Water to date, the regulatory arrangements that
would be expected to apply to Thames Water in AMP8 make the PR24
plan uninvestible. As a result, the conditions of the support
letter from July 2023 have not been satisfied and the first £500
million of the new equity that had been anticipated will not be
provided by Thames Water's shareholders by 31 March 2024.
Discussions with Ofwat and other stakeholders are ongoing. Thames Water
aims to secure a PR24 regulatory determination that is
affordable for customers, deliverable and financeable for Thames
Water, as well as investible for equity investors. Following
receipt of the draft PR24 determination (expected in May/June
2024), Thames Water intends to pursue all options to secure the
required equity investment from new or existing
shareholders.
Thames Water has liquidity of £2.4
billion of cash and available committed facilities, as at 29
February 2024.
Chris Weston, CEO of Thames Water said: 'I'd like to reassure our customers that, despite this
announcement, it is business as usual for Thames Water. Our
8,000 staff remain committed to working with our partners in the
supply chain to provide our services for the benefit of our
customers, communities and the environment.'
For
investor enquiries please contact
David Gregg - Director of Corporate
Finance
Sarah Davies - Head of Investor
Relations
debt.investorrelations@thameswater.co.uk
For
media enquiries please contact
Suvra Jans
Head of Media Relations
07747 640 810
Suvra.jans@thameswater.co.uk
Or
Sarah Long
Head of Turnaround
Communications
07747 646985
Sarah.long2@thameswater.co.uk
Information contained in this
announcement would have been deemed inside information for the
purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 as amended and
as it forms part of United Kingdom domestic law ("UK MAR") until the release of this
announcement. For the purpose of UK MAR and Article 2 of Commission
Implementing Regulating (EU) 2016/1055 as it forms part of United
Kingdom domestic law, this announcement is made by Al Cochran
(Director) at Thames Water Utilities Limited.
LEI: 213800JKM5UQHFJOTZ25