By. Anna Leach, Carmen Aguilar García and Sandra Laville
Guardian unpicks complex web of investment firms, wealth funds and tax haven-based businesses that own most of sector
England’s water: the world’s piggy bank
Can global water investors be held to account?
England’s water: is privatised model a fair system?
England’s water firms respond to investigation into role of global investors
Anna Leach, Carmen Aguilar García and Sandra Laville
Wed 30 Nov 2022 09.30 EST
Foreign investment firms, private equity, pension funds and businesses lodged in tax havens own more than 70% of the water industry in England, according to research by the Guardian.
The complex web of ownership is revealed as the public and some politicians increasingly call for the industry to be held to account for sewage dumping, leaks and water shortages. Six water companies are under investigation for potentially illegal activities as pressure grows on the industry to put more money into replacing and restoring crumbling infrastructure to protect both the environment and public health.
More than three decades after the sector was sold off with a promise to the public they would become individual small shareholders or “H2Owners”, control of the water industry has become dominated by overseas investment vehicles, the super-rich, companies in tax havens and pension fund investors. The ownership structure is such that transparency and accountability are limited, according to Dr Kate Bayliss, a research associate with the department of economics at Soas University of London.
International investment funds with large stakes include several household names as well as sovereign wealth funds. For example the Qatar Investment Authority is the third largest shareholder in Severn Trent, with a 4.6% holding, while almost 10% is held by the US investment company BlackRock and its subsidiaries, according to analysis of shareholdings as of October this year.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/nov/30/more-than-70-per-cent-english-water-industry-foreign-ownership