South East Water has warned of "material uncertainty" over its ability to continue as a going concern, saying it only has enough funds to operate until July 2027 without securing new loan facilities. The disclosure comes after a torrid year for the lossmaking supplier, which paid millions in fines and saw both its chair and chief executive forced out following widespread supply outages that angered customers and politicians across its Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire operating area.

The company, which serves 2.4 million customers, said losses widened to £33m from £14m despite revenue rising from £285m to £352m after a 7% bill increase, and it must now agree new lending with creditors, with talks expected to conclude by summer 2026. Ofwat this week ordered it to pay a £30.5m redress package over the outages, adding further financial strain, while Moody's downgraded the firm to junk status days after its own risk committee had expected to retain an investment-grade rating. Former chief executive David Hinton still received £488,000 in pay despite forgoing his bonus, though he lost out on a £400,000 "service award". The case adds to pressure on incoming prime minister Andy Burnham over the wider water industry, including a possible special administration for Thames Water.