Overview
- Thames Water, serving 16 million customers, is at risk of insolvency due to £19 billion in debt and blocked access to a £3 billion rescue loan.
- A Court of Appeal hearing next week will determine whether the company can access the funds, with a March 24 deadline looming for a major debt repayment.
- The government is preparing contingency plans for special administration, which would place the company under temporary public ownership.
- Critics argue that nationalisation could burden taxpayers with up to £4.1 billion in costs and disrupt efforts to secure private investment.
- Thames Water has faced public backlash over infrastructure underinvestment and sewage pollution, with calls for reform growing across political parties.