Shropshire Star

Turnover and profits rise for Severn Trent

Water company Severn Trent saw turnover and profits rise in its latest financial year.

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Severn Trent chief executive Liv Garfield

Pre-tax profit was up by £36 million – 6.8 per cent – to £563m for the year to the end of March with group turnover rising £71m – 4.2 per cent – to £1.76 billion.

Severn Trent, which serves around eight million people across the Midlands, has maintained the lowest bills in England for a decade and said that was set to continue to at least 2025.

It was the largest year of capital spend in a decade for the company, which has its headquarters in Coventry, at £769 million.

Severn Trent was one of the first companies in the UK to make the triple pledge to achieve net zero carbon, 100 per cent electric fleet and 100 per cent of energy from renewable sources by 2030

Chief executive Liv Garfield said: "This has been a year where our teams have really stepped up, whether in response to customer needs in the face of one of the hottest and driest summers we've seen or by being named by Ofwat as one of the top companies in the sector when we received fast-track status for our future plans.

"At the heart of all of that is our drive to succeed for all of our stakeholders, which is shown in the results we're announcing today. They demonstrate not only that we can deliver for our investors but also that we're putting ourselves at the heart of the communities in which we live and work by building a lasting legacy for future generations.

"Whether that's spending time in our region's primary schools exploring the importance of using water the right way, bringing an employee's idea to life that finds an innovative new way to improve our services, or the investment we make day after day in maintaining our assets. By balancing the needs of everyone in this way, we are confident we are doing the right things for all of our stakeholders."

In its next asset management period from 2020 to 2025, Severn Trent aims to reduce bills by five per cent, invest £6.55 billion, and deliver on ambitious performance commitments for customers.

The current five-year period has seen a reduction of 62 per cent in external sewer flooding and 15 per cent in water quality complaints

In the past couple of months the company has announced two new initiatives. It has founded a new World Water Innovation Fund, which brings together water companies from around the globe, to collaboratively tackle some of the biggest challenges they face, starting with leakage.

Severn Trent has also played a leading role in making a series of sector-wide pledges including net zero carbon emissions, the elimination of water poverty, and the prevention of four billion plastic bottles going to landfill – all by 2030.