June 6 (Reuters) - U.S. investment firms Silver Point
Capital and Elliott Management are formulating a
10-billion-pound-plus ($13.53 billion) rescue package for
Britain's Thames Water, Bloomberg News reported on Friday,
citing people familiar with the matter.
The deal will comprise a major debt overhaul, including a
multi-billion-pound haircut for senior creditors, in addition to
reductions already expected for junior Class B bonds, loans and
around 3 billion pounds in holding company debt, the report
said.
The rescue package will provide an equity boost of between 3
billion pounds and 4 billion pounds to stabilize the utility's
finances, according to the report.
"The Creditors have submitted a detailed long-term
turnaround plan that will fix the root causes of Thames Water's
problems, restore its balance sheet, rebuild customer trust and
fix the fundamentals of the business once and for all," a
spokesperson for the creditors, which include Silver Point
Capital and Elliott, said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
Thames Water did not immediately respond to a request for
comment.
Thames Water suffered a major setback on Tuesday in its
fight to avoid nationalisation, as it said U.S. private equity
firm KKR had pulled out of a multi-billion-pound rescue
plan.
Britain's biggest water supplier is at the centre of a
public backlash against the privatised water sector, which has
been blamed for polluting Britain's rivers and seas while hiking
bills and prioritising dividend payouts over infrastructure
investment.
($1 = 0.7393 pounds)