Is Thames Water about to collapse?

[magneze]

I'll vote for whoever pledges to start renationalizing this stuff. It's ridiculous. Might write to my Labour MP to tell them. Maybe it'll make a difference.

 

[MickiQ]

The state should just appropriate the company. Fuck the shareholders, they've made enough.

The debt will get knocked off the company's valuation, the Govt only paid £2.5M for Forgemasters which was ridiculously cheap (they could have made more selling the land for housing) but it assumed the debt.
Thames Valley's shareholders are not likely to lose their shirts but they won't get anywhere near the current face value of their shares. Any non-transferable debts (tax and broker fees mostly) wil deducted from the purchase price before the money gets shared out by the shareholders. They will end up getting something though unless the Govt is willing to waiting until TV goes into administration and buys it up in a fire sale but then you hit other problems like lost jobs and pension commitments.

 

[brogdale]

The debt will get knocked off the company's valuation, the Govt only paid £2.5M for Forgemasters which was ridiculously cheap (they could have made more selling the land for housing) but it assumed the debt.
Thames Valley's shareholders are not likely to lose their shirts but they won't get anywhere near the current face value of their shares. Any non-transferable debts (tax and broker fees mostly) wil deducted from the purchase price before the money gets shared out by the shareholders. They will end up getting something though unless the Govt is willing to waiting until TV goes into administration and buys it up in a fire sale but then you hit other problems like lost jobs and pension commitments.

They have the power to legislate to take the thing over for nothing; of course, as fellow travellers with the asset manager class, they won't do that.

 

[WouldBe]

We've been in an official state of drought for over a year now. And probably will be indefinitely.

Too many tourists. Close the borders.

 

[teqniq]

much good it may do, but please sign and share:

Bring Thames Water into public ownership

weownit.org.uk

 

[moochedit]

Would have thought some form of nationalisation is inevitable if the company is in financial trouble. Water is essential so they are hardly going to leave it to "the market" even if that goes against their beliefs.

 

[gosub]

much good it may do, but please sign and share:

Bring Thames Water into public ownership

weownit.org.uk

You want Scotland to pay for Tories water as well as their own? While their at it suppose they want the Surrey potholes paid for as well.

(Agree in principle, just hasn't done enough damage to Tory reputation yet)

 

[marty21]

Even though I'd prefer all utilities to be publicly owned, the water companies fuck me off even more - at least with the others, the justification of competition has some vague truth in it - there are lots of power companies I can choose from if I want to - I've never had the choice of who I pay my water rates to. It's been 30 years of asset stripping as far as I can see - they started with no debt - guaranteed income stream - no competition - and have just sent billions to their shareholders whilst seemingly not doing much about the antiquated systems they are supposed to maintain and improve - and now they seem to want to be bailed out by the government - absolute cunts.

 

[Sue]

It's been 30 years of asset stripping as far as I can see - they started with no debt - guaranteed income stream - no competition - and have just sent billions to their shareholders whilst seemingly not doing much about the antiquated systems they are supposed to maintain and improve - and now they seem to want to be bailed out by the government - absolute cunts.

Apart from those minor quibbles though reckon it's gone pretty well. (Everyone's a critic etc.)

 

[SpookyFrank]

Some cunt on BBC news last night explaining that the debt is just money gone to shareholders, but the government is hoping for a 'shareholder injection of money soon' - ffs, why do they repeat this utter drivel they are given by various govt. departments? Do we not have any actual journalists any more?

Yeah I'm sure loads of people are looking to invest in Thames Water right now

 

[Gromit]

Yeah I'm sure loads of people are looking to invest in Thames Water right now

I tried to find the ticker code out of interest but H&L may not be trading in them.

 

[Idris2002]

Has he got a good heart?

He's a distant relative of mine (NB, I've never met him).

 

[Gromit]

Has he got a good heart?

He has but it's hard to find these days.
(what with it being incased in a rib cage and behind the lungs).

 

[andysays]

He's a distant relative of mine (NB, I've never met him).

You sure you're not his cousin?

 

[Sue]

You sure you're not his cousin?

Are you....single, Idris2002?

 

[FridgeMagnet]

Typically, there's been an interruption to the water supply in Hammersmith and Shepherds Bush. It's the second time in the space of a month this has happened. There are two hospitals in the borough, too.

Yeah I had this yesterday in W12, nothing out of the bathroom cold taps til early afternoon. (Has been ok today apart from making some odd clunk noises occasionally.)

 

[weltweit]

Is it right that the CEO of a water company was paid £1.6 million.
I mean it is a water company for goodness sake, it can't require the most innovative thinking.
Just seems ridiculous to me.

 

[Cid]

Is it right that the CEO of a water company was paid £1.6 million.
I mean it is a water company for goodness sake, it can't require the most innovative thinking.
Just seems ridiculous to me.

Managing the entire water system of the south east from supply to sewage and and wastewater treatment? I mean in this case they manifestly failed to be remotely good at the job, and you probably could have found someone significantly better for 1/10th the salary, but at its best of course it would require research, innovation etc.

 

[alex_]

To be honest, they’ve practically nationalised themselves - Thames have got 14bn of debt and 2bn of revenue - 6% on 14bn is 840m.

It’s not quite this bad, but long term high interest rates, a new “you’ve shit on the beach” fines regime ( increased to 250m per breach last October ), and they will go bust on their own - the state buys the debt for pennies in the pound and you are done.

 

[Larry O'Hara]

much good it may do, but please sign and share:

Bring Thames Water into public ownership

weownit.org.uk

Was about to post this, glad you did

 

[DJWrongspeed]

Good BBC article which explains why they are in debt.
Being a national utility it was easy to get loans and this has finally caught up with the company as the economic picture changes.

 

[brogdale]

Good BBC article which explains why they are in debt.
Being a national utility it was easy to get loans and this has finally caught up with the company as the economic picture changes.

Not bad considering its from the state broadcaster. One quibble though; describing Mcquarie as a "bank" is a little misleading, they're basically one of the largest, most rapacious infrastructure asset management outfits in the world and make most of their grotesquely huge profits from privatised natural monopolies.

 

[two sheds]

Secret email from Severn Trent water boss to rivals: fend off nationalisation

‘Please don’t forward this email,’ begs £4m-a-year water chief Liv Garfield

www.standard.co.uk

Starmer to the rescue so they can keep their jobs?

She writes: “Whilst it is clear Labour will not include nationalisation in its next manifesto, they are also not keen on entering into the election race championing the status quo. The leadership thinks there is room for improvement and, politically, there is significant pressure to ‘do something’ about utilities.”


She adds: “One idea we believe might be attractive to the Labour leadership is re-purposing utilities and utility networks into a new breed of declared social purpose companies – companies that remain privately owned, who absolutely can (and should) make a profit, but ones that also have a special duty to take a long-term view.”

 

[Plumdaff]

Nothing says Starmer like the same old Tory shit but here's a thin veneer of pretending we're nicer.

 

[Bingoman]

Secret email from Severn Trent water boss to rivals: fend off nationalisation

‘Please don’t forward this email,’ begs £4m-a-year water chief Liv Garfield

www.standard.co.uk

Starmer to the rescue so they can keep their jobs?

If Severn trent are worried about being nationalised all I can say to that is stop paying about big bonus to the bosses etc and use the money to help household and those struggling, but I guess they wont at the end of the day

 

[Sue]

Nothing says Starmer like the same old Tory shit but here's a thin veneer of pretending we're nicer.

And they're fucking shit at that an' all.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Secret email from Severn Trent water boss to rivals: fend off nationalisation

‘Please don’t forward this email,’ begs £4m-a-year water chief Liv Garfield

www.standard.co.uk

Starmer to the rescue so they can keep their jobs?

Water companies already have a 'special duty to take a long term view' they just ignore it. Because their primary aim is to generate profit.

You can't just rebrand privatisation and expect that to make any difference. But then of course they don't expect to actually fix the problem, they just want the kudos from appearing to try and fix it without any backlash from the city.

 

[Epona]

We're not on a meter and the fuckers put our water rates up to £64 a month this financial year which was quite a big price hike.
I mean that is a lot of money a month for them to discharge sewage into our local river.

 

[newme]

Nothing says Starmer like the same old Tory shit but here's a thin veneer of pretending we're nicer.

I really want the Tories out but fucking hell are Labour making it difficult for them to be the alternative. Would never vote Tory but at least make an effort to try.

 

[cupid_stunt]

We're not on a meter and the fuckers put our water rates up to £64 a month this financial year which was quite a big price hike.
I mean that is a lot of money a month for them to discharge sewage into our local river.

Fucking hell that's insane, can you not have a water meter, because you're in a flat?

I was paying £38pm back in 2015, which I estimate would be around £50pm now, but Southern Water forced us to have meters, and now I pay just £11.50pm, admittedly my usage is very low.