The chief executive of Thames Water will not rule out increasing water bills by up to 40% for customers as the company are struggling with £15 billion of debt along with high interest payments.
Investors have pulled a £500 million funding lifeline which was expected to paid by the end of March, and Thames Water blamed Ofwat for making the business plan “uninvestible.”
Chris Weston said that if there is no funding by the end of 2025 then the company could enter into special administration, meaning that taxpayers will end up picking up the whopping bill.
The Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has said the Treasury are monitoring the situation “very carefully.”
Hunt was asked by reporters if the government will step in to support the troubled company, he said, “Our understanding is that the company is still solvent and today’s news should not have an impact on the services received by customers.
“Obviously, there are parts of the country where the service has not been up to scratch … overall we will continue to watch the situation very carefully.”
Sky News Ian King asked about the possibility of bills being raised, Weston said, “I don’t think we have been at all secretive about that.
“But the plans that we have put forward – which are very much in accordance with what customers are asking us to do – require an investment of around £20bn in that 2025-2030 period, and that would result in a bill (increase) of around 40%.”
Weston added, “It is very clear listening to our customers that what they value most is high quality clean drinking water and that we do do all that we can to protect the environment.
“Those two things are primarily what is driving the investment that we are having to make in our network in that five year period.”
Weston acknowledged that bills being hiked “could be very, very difficult for people,” and that Thames Water are looking at what they can do to help the most vulnerable.
