Mon, 31 Mar 2025

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 Thames Water picks private equity firm as preferred buyer

The troubled water utility firm says KKR could complete the deal in the second half of this year.

* Thames Water, the UK's largest water company, has chosen US private equity giant KKR as its "preferred partner" to buy the firm.
* The planned investment by KKR would help deal with Thames Water's £19bn debt pile and modernize outdated infrastructure.
* The transaction is expected to be completed in the second half of this year.
* Thames Water has been struggling with sewage spills, leaks, and a heavy burden of debt since its privatization in 1989.
* In 2020-21, the company discharged at least 72 billion liters of sewage into rivers, sparking criticism.
* The government had previously threatened to nationalize Thames Water if it collapsed, but secured a £3bn rescue loan earlier this year.
  >>