Thames Water paid its finance chief Steve Buck a £1m signing-on fee in July, according to the BBC, as the utility company struggles with a debt mountain of roughly £20bn and faces the possibility of temporary nationalisation. The existence of the payment, first reported by Sky News, was revealed in a letter from the Thames Water chairman to MPs on the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, the BBC reported.
Buck joined the company in April 2025, but the seven-figure payment was not made until July after Thames Water had taken legal advice over its contractual obligations, according to the BBC. The money is believed to have come from emergency funding provided by Thames Water's lenders.
Signing-on fee details
The BBC said the payment was apparently revealed in a letter from the Thames Water chairman to MPs on the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, and was first reported by Sky News. The company took legal advice over its contractual obligations before making the seven-figure payment, which the BBC said is believed to have been funded from emergency money supplied by lenders.
Special administration threat
Thames Water owes roughly £20bn and has been working with creditors and government officials to find a way forward, according to the BBC.
Failure to reach a deal could lead to Thames Water being forced into a special administration regime, a form of temporary nationalisation intended to keep the business operating until a viable solution can be found.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has previously said he would like to see "greater public control" of key water and energy utilities, the BBC reported. Speaking to the BBC last month, Thames Water boss Chris Weston warned that special administration could see taxpayers left bearing the cost. Instead, he backed a rescue deal put forward by the firm's lenders.
Regulatory scrutiny and the record fine
Thames Water has faced intense criticism for several years over failures to prevent sewage discharges and leaks, according to the BBC. Last year it was handed a record fine of £122.7m from the regulator Ofwat, which said the company had "let down its customers and failed to protect the environment". Weston said he wanted the company to "do better" but some of the targets it had been set were "not realistic".
Key financial figures
| Item | Figure | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Signing-on fee | £1m | Paid to finance chief Steve Buck in July |
| Total debt | Roughly £20bn | Utility working with creditors and government officials |
| Ofwat fine | £122.7m | Record penalty imposed on Thames Water last year |
| Hire date | April 2025 | Date finance chief Steve Buck joined the company |
Corporate finance implications
For finance executives and treasury professionals tracking utility credit risk, the key facts from the BBC's reporting are the £1m signing-on fee paid from emergency lender funding, the roughly £20bn debt burden, and the possibility that taxpayers could bear the cost if the company enters a special administration regime, as Chris Weston warned. The lender-backed rescue deal has Weston's support, while Andy Burnham has said he would like to see greater public control of key utilities. The BBC also reported that the fine and operational criticism remain part of the company's recent record, and its finance chief's seven-figure payment was disclosed in a letter to MPs.
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