US Markets
Home›US Markets›M&A & Deals›Thames Water paid finance chief a 1 million signing fee
Thames Water paid finance chief a 1 million signing fee
The payment, made last month, drew scrutiny as the company seeks to avoid public control amid ongoing environmental failings and regulatory pressure.
Thames Water has paid its chief financial officer, Steve Buck, a 1 million signing fee, according to a letter sent by chair Sir Adrian Montague to MPs on the environment, food and rural affairs select committee, Sky News first reported. The utility revealed the payment was made last month.
The company has faced scrutiny over continued environmental failings and the related financial fallout, including scrutiny that has led at least eight water companies to be banned from paying performance related bonuses. Thames provides water and sewage services to 16 million customers in London and the Thames valley.
Thames has been on the verge of collapse for more than two years, and the government has been urged to take control so debts worth billions of pounds could be written off. Creditors that effectively control Thames have spent months negotiating to take formal ownership, seeking potential leniency on future fines.
In a last-ditch effort to avoid debt write downs, the creditors have offered the government a “golden share” in the business, while regulators decide whether they will grant the sought-for flexibility going forward, the Guardian Business reported.