Thames Water has chosen us the KKR key capital giant as a “favorite partner” to buy the company in difficulty in public water services.
The investment provided by KKR would help to face its mountain of debts, and the Thames aims to make the transaction in the second half of this year.
Thames Water began to seek investments last year after its shareholders at the time said that the company was “investable”.
The company has been strongly criticized for wastewater spills and also has trouble repairing leaks and modernizing obsolete infrastructure.
Thames Water serves approximately a quarter of the population of the United Kingdom, mainly through London and in certain parts of the south of England, and employs 8,000 people.
In recent weeks, the company – which has debts of nearly 20 billion pounds Sterling – has obtained a rescue loan of 3 billion pounds sterling to challenge the prospect of the company under the control of the government.
The Thames had recently declared that it had received approaches from six companies on possible investments in exchange for participation in the company.
He did not say how KKR was planning to invest, but declared that the proposal would lead to a “material impairment” for certain creditors, which means a radiation of some of the debt and the interests that the water of the Thames must.
The Thames added that there was no certainty that a binding proposition would emerge and that regulatory approval would be needed.
“The company remains focused on the establishment of Thames Water on a more stable financial basis, the implementation of its recovery plan and the supply of a solution led by the market which is in the interest of customers, British taxpayers and the economy in the broad sense,” he said.
