Thames Water among six water firms urging watchdog for higher bill increases

Thames Water is among six water firms urging regulators to allow them to charge customers even more than previously granted – after a High Court judge allowed England’s largest water firm to borrow £3 billion to avoid collapse.

In December, sector regulator Ofwat said it would allow water firms to raise bills by an average of £157, or 36%, over the next five years to help finance investment into crumbling infrastructure.

On Tuesday, Thames Water and five other firms asked the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to reconsider bill increase plans.

This came just hours after the High Court ruled that Thames Water could press on with a £3 billion cash injection to prevent imminent collapse, in a high-cost loan deal described by Mr Justice Leech as “eye-watering”.

Southern Water, Anglian Water and South East Water began the appeal to Ofwat earlier on Tuesday, before they were joined by Thames Water, Northumbrian Water and Wessex Water, Ofwat confirmed.

David Henderson, chief executive of Water UK, said that although “many water companies can live with Ofwat’s decisions”, the six appellants felt like they had “no choice” but to demand a review in the hopes that Ofwat would amend its conclusions.

He said: “Water companies need to invest billions to strengthen and expand infrastructure to support economic growth, secure our water supplies and end sewage entering our rivers and seas.

“Although many water companies can live with Ofwat’s decisions, an unprecedented six – serving the majority of customers in England – feel that they have no choice but to appeal to the Competition and Markets Authority.

“Companies hope it will overturn Ofwat’s decisions so they can get on with the job of helping deliver the Government’s overriding national priority – economic growth.”

Southern Water had already been allowed a 53% increase to average bills over the next five years through the December ruling.

Anglian Water had been allowed 29% and South East Water had been granted 24%.

But the firms have all argued that they need to lift bills by more than this in order to fund improvements and to meet environmental commitments.

Chris Walters, Senior Director for the Price Review at Ofwat, said: “As part of the standard process underpinning our price reviews, it is the right of companies to request a redetermination by the CMA.

“We will be re-stating our case as part of this process.

“Our PR24 final determinations unlock a quadrupling of investment by the sector.

“This will accelerate the delivery of work to deliver cleaner rivers and seas – as well as securing long-term drinking water supplies for customers.

“Final determinations were based on a robust examination of all funding requests made by companies to ensure every pound of customer bills provides value for money, delivers real improvements and enables the sector to attract the investment it needs.”

Thames Water, England’s biggest water firm, supplies about 16 million households across London and the South East.

The company has been at the centre of growing public outrage over the extent of pollution, rising bills, high dividends, and executive pay and bonuses at the UK’s privatised water firms.

It also has at least £16 billion of debt, and had previously warned it only had enough money to keep running until March 24, when it would have fallen into a temporary nationalisation.

In his Tuesday ruling Mr Justice Leech said Thames Water should be allowed to “finish the jigsaw” and find new investors before passing the costs of nationalisation onto the Government.