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...Although the water companies often attribute failures to the Victorian infrastructure, most of the pipe network was replaced before privatisation....
...We will take action against companies that fail to meet the licence condition.”...
...However, new rules introduced by Ofwat last year prevent the payment of dividends from the operating company if they put the company’s financial resilience at risk or if a utility underperforms on social...
...Two directors, including company secretary Rachael Hambrook, quit parent company Kemble on Thursday in a sign of the water monopoly’s growing distress....
...“Thames Water is a canary in a coal mine,” said one water company investor. “You’ve got the biggest water company teetering on the brink and we are all watching....
...The CCW said it hoped to see more companies using funds from their own investors, shareholders or parent companies to support struggling customers....
...Ofwat is probing a £37.5mn payout by Thames Water to its parent company, Kemble, in October, despite environmental failures....
...“Most companies do the minimum government regulation allows, that is how they are set up....
...Several water companies need shareholders to inject cash to improve operations and pay down debt....
...Ofwat said it “is for the company to secure shareholder backing to improve its financial resilience”....
...Other companies have also been amending their business plans following discussions with Ofwat....
...The opco, or operating company, is the regulated entity overseen by Ofwat....
...Gill PlimmerThere’s also a lot of other companies in trouble. Southern Water is another big water company that was rescued by the Australian infrastructure manager, Macquarie....
...The company could be split into a “London Water” company serving the capital and a “Thames Valley” business serving the rest of its area, according to the plans that were leaked to The Guardian newspaper...
...Gill is absolutely spot on. Water companies cannot voluntarily go into liquidation....
...Thames Water has a complex group structure with seven layers between the parent company and the operating company, which is regulated by Ofwat and collects customer bill payments....
...The company’s shareholders, including pension and sovereign-wealth funds, have refused to inject more cash....
...Companies are hoping to find multiple ways to make desalination more efficient without boosting carbon emissions....
...This apparently minor plumbing upgrade puts the ecosystem under another layer of costly strain and further cements US dominance. katie.martin@ft.com...
...One person close to the talks said the situation was fluid and a company announcement could be made on Thursday....
...Cat Hobbs, director of We Own It, which campaigns for public ownership of water companies, said the “£11mn is around 0.02 per cent of what’s needed”, referring to the £60bn of investment that water companies...
...He added there were lessons to be learnt from the travails of public sector monopolies such as water companies....
...The investor resistance to Ofwat’s demands precipitated a default by Thames Water’s parent company last week....
...The requirement since 2015 for water companies to install event duration monitors has transformed public awareness of sewage discharges, with some companies including Thames Water providing real-time maps...
...This could trigger a messy debt restructuring or insolvency of this holding company. Bondholders and banks could theoretically push to take control of the company through a debt-for-equity swap....
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