Overview

• Southern Water’s majority owner Macquarie Group and its consortium have committed up to £1.2 billion in fresh equity, with an initial £655 million now and £545 million due by December.
• Holding company creditors have agreed to write down debt from £865 million to £415 million under the latest support package.
• Moody’s downgrade of Southern’s bonds to junk status and S&P’s warning of further cuts made the equity raise vital for maintaining an investment-grade rating.
• The rescue deal includes a pledge of no dividends through the 2025–30 regulatory period to bolster the utility’s financial resilience.
• An additional £300 million of funding hinges on the outcome of a Competition and Markets Authority appeal over higher customer charges.