UK water group reports fall in profits
Water company Severn Trent today reported a fall in profits as it counted the cost of a record fine from Ofwat and the impact of last summer’s flooding.
The surplus of £192.4m (€243.2m) for the year to March 31 represented a 41% decline on a year earlier, although the company said it made progress at an underlying level after profits rose 15.8% to £469.5m (€593.4m).
Severn was fined £35.8m (€46.8) in April for deliberately providing false information and poor customer service in a period up to 2005. The company’s actions resulted in customers paying higher bills than they should have done, leading Ofwat to label the firm’s actions as “unacceptable”.
It is currently awaiting a second fine relating to a separate Serious Fraud Office action on false leakage data given to Ofwat in 2001 and 2002.
All the matters relate to previous management and Severn said today it was nearing the end of resolving legacy issues from the old regime.
