Thames Water publishes environmental, social and governance statement

Thames Water has published its first environmental, social and governance statement and been recognised for its commitment to sustainability in a global review.

The statement brings together key metrics to provide stakeholders and investors with an overview of the company’s performance. Thames Water said the statement demonstrates its commitment to transparency and ensures business activities are conducted in an environmentally sustainable and socially responsible way.

It outlines how the company is delivering against environmental, social and governance criteria, includes three years of data and provides source references to give balance and context for performance information.

The publication of the statement follows recognition of Thames Water’s commitment to sustainability by the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark for Infrastructure. The water and wastewater services company finished top in the water and sewerage category and seventh for infrastructure across all 280 international businesses that took part in the evaluation.

Thames Water chief executive Steve Robertson said: “We’re very proud to have been recognised globally for our ongoing commitment to sustainability. As the provider of life’s essential services, we take our responsibilities to our customers, our people and the environment very seriously.

“We’ve entered a new chapter at Thames Water, one where increasing openness and transparency is embedded into the way we operate, and we’re going above statutory requirements with the publication of our first environmental, social and governance statement.”

Thames Water recently published its draft £11.7 billion business plan for the PR19 price control covering the period 2020-25. The company proposed to invest record amounts on improving resilience, service and efficiency, as well as providing more support for vulnerable customers.

Following the submission of the business plan to Ofwat, Thames Water also published its latest corporate responsibility and sustainability report.

As part of its future plans, the company has dedicated an additional £1.1 billion to activities to protect and enhance the environment, including reducing pollution by 18 per cent and generating enough renewable energy to power 115,000 homes. It will also spend an additional £2.1 billion increasing resilience to meet future challenges, improving the quality of 745 kilometres of rivers and reducing leakage from its network of water pipes by 15 per cent.

Roberston added: “We understand the importance and our responsibility of being custodians of the natural environment and, along with our customers, place it at the heart of all of our decision making.

“Our corporate responsibility and sustainability report explains how we deliver an essential service to 15 million people while becoming increasingly more sustainable in one of the country’s most water-stressed regions, while also addressing the rising challenges of climate change and population growth.”