Severn Trent is continuing to pay out more to shareholders than it earns from its customers but says it is in a strong position to deliver £3.5 billion of infrastructure improvements over the next five years.
The Midlands water monopoly which serves 4.6 million households has, like the rest of the industry, struggled to make ends meet with inflation hitting operating costs and high interest rates raising the cost of serving its £7.66 billion net debt mountain.
In the six months to the end of September, rising bills enabled it to raise another £52 million in revenues to £1.21 billion while its net finance costs after a fall in interest rates were cut by £55 million to £124 million.
Together that transformed the bottom line,