Pennon Group PLC (LSE:PNN, OTC:PEGRY)'s annual report comes just weeks after subsidiary South West Water apologised for a diarrhoea outbreak at the Devon fishing town of Brixham.
Add in the repeated incidences of sewage dumping around some of Britain’s most revered coastlines and inland waterways and how much boss Susan Davy is taking home in pay will surely generate plenty of headlines.
Davy declined her bonus last year, taking home a basic salary of £543,000 compared to £1.53 million the year before, an amount that included a hefty performance-related boost.
Pennon has yet to say whether Davy will get a bonus for the year just ended, but Tuesday’s report will reveal that.
Just a fortnight ago, Pennon paid out a lower dividend than expected to cover the cost of a fine for record levels of sewage dumping last year but the fact it handed out anything (£127 million in total) sparked outrage among clean water campaigners.
All the water companies have now submitted investment plans for the next five years with reports that hefty price rises were requested across the board. Pennon reportedly wanted 31% over the period covered by the review.
Regulator Ofwat has apparently taken a dim view and is set to turn these requests down, though the decision will not be announced until after the election on 11 July with a final determination in December after appeals.
Severn Trent recently defended a £3.2 million salary for its CEO despite the Midlands water supplier being fined £2 million for spilling 240 million litres of raw sewage into the River Trent near Stoke.
SVT is seeking a 50% increase in customer prices.
Whether Pennon has the same appetite as its Midlands-based peer to brazen it out will become clear next week.