A lender to crisis-struck utilities provider Thames Water is seeking to offload £500 million worth of loans onto the market, according to a Bloomberg report citing “people with knowledge of the matter”.
The lender is also hoping to offload £100 million in bonds.
Amid financial stress and a walloping £16 billion debt pile, Thames Water’s bonds have plummeted to just 5.8p on the pound.
Though this presents a steal for potential buyers who may be more optimistic about Thames Water’s prospects than market pricings suggest, the company’s troubles are manifold.
Parent company Kemble’s debt was heavily discounted after defaulting on £400 million of bonds in April, with recent turmoil among the board of directors adding to the woes.
Thames Water’s largest shareholder Omers Infrastructure withdrew its board representative last week, with more board members subsequently quitting this week.
Omers fully wrote down its 31.7% stake in Kemble, calling the utility “worthless” and “uninvestable”.