Thames Water to start fundraising talks in amid cash crisis
manchestereveningnews.co.ukThames Water has said it will kick off the process of raising more money from investors over the next few weeks. The struggling water giant said that while it has been in talks with potential funders since July, it will launch its formal “equity solicitation process” in the coming weeks.
That process is expected to drag on beyond December, when regulator Ofwat publishes its final verdict on water firms’ proposed plans for raising consumer bills from 2025 until 2030. READ MORE: Prisoner at Forest Bank jail hurt 'after inmate gained access to sex offender wing' Thames Water, which serves about 16 million people, is in the grip of a funding crisis, and has only enough cash to continue operating until May 2025.
It also has more than £15 billion of debt, and Ofwat has said it intends to appoint an independent monitor to supervise the company as it attempts a turnaround.
If Thames Water does not raise fresh cash, it faces a potential nationalisation next year, something the Labour Government has said it is keen to avoid.
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