Thames Water begs creditors for another £2.4bn or it will run out of cash by early 2027

Britain's most indebted water company has told its creditors it will go bust by the end of 2026 or early 2027 unless they hand over another £2.4bn emergency cash injection. Thames Water, which serves 16 million customers across London and the Thames Valley, has already burned through most of a £3bn lifeline granted in February 2025 without securing a long-term refinancing deal. Its total debt pile now stands at around £20bn, shareholders have already walked away, and the company admits it cannot complete its recapitalisation before the money runs out.

American hedge funds including Elliott Management and Silver Point Capital, plus institutional investors BlackRock and M&G, are among the creditors being asked to stump up again.

Senior creditors are reportedly close to a deal among themselves to avoid a court challenge that could further delay any restructuring agreement.