Water companies are fighting for higher bills despite outrage

Water companies plan to take their case to competition authorities if they do not get their way in their plans to increase bills by up to 91 percent.

In a key week, regulator Ofwat will announce on Thursday how much each utility in England and Wales can charge its customers for water and sewerage over the next five years.

This could decide the fate of Thames Water, which supplies water to 16 million households in and around London while teetering on the brink with debts of £16 billion.

Thames Water says it will run out of money by the end of this month unless it secures a £3 billion lifeline from its creditors.

On Tuesday, a High Court judge will hear from two rival groups of bondholders as they put forward their own plans for emergency loans to prevent Thames Water going into special administration – a form of temporary nationalization.

In addition, Thames Water is in discussions with candidates about a share injection, because previous shareholders declared the company ‘uninvestable’. Potential buyers will wait to see whether Thames succeeds in its demand for a 59 per cent increase in bills over the period to secure much-needed investment in its creaking network of pipes and sewers.

Difference of opinion: Water companies want to increase bills by an average of £144 over the next five years, but Ofwat has capped the increase at £94 for now

The Thames recorded 17,554 overflows from storm flooding in the first nine months of this year, compared to 14,428 in the same period in 2023, blamed on record rainfall.

Southern Water has tabled plans to increase bills by 91 per cent – ​​the biggest increase of any water company.

It remains subject to enforcement scrutiny after being hit with a record £126m fine in 2019 over ‘shocking’ failures at its sewage treatment sites.

Every water company in England and Wales is under investigation for pollution, amid public outrage over huge dividend payouts to foreign shareholders and big bonuses to bosses.

Water companies want to increase bills by an average of £144 over the next five years, but Ofwat has limited the increase to £94 for now.

Four water companies successfully challenged Ofwat’s last pricing ruling in 2019 and won a more generous settlement.

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