Business
Interim Management Statement and AGM
Interim Management Statement and AGM.
About this update from United Utilities Group Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \nUnited Utilities Group PLC\n\n26 July 2013\n\n UNITED UTILITIES GROUP PLC 2013 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING \n\n AND INTERIM MANAGEMENT STATEMENT \n\nUnited Utilities issues an interim management statement, for the period 1 April\n2013 to 25 July 2013, ahead of its annual general meeting to be held today at\nThe Midland Hotel, Peter Street, Manchester.\n\nTrading update\n\nCurrent trading is in line with the group's expectations. Revenue is higher,\nreflecting the regulated price increase for 2013/14. However, as expected, this\nincrease is slightly below the allowed regulated price rise, principally\nreflecting the continuing impact of a tough economic climate on commercial\nvolumes. The increase in revenue is partly offset by higher depreciation and\nother operating costs, as expected.\n\nAs planned, capital investment has continued at high levels as United Utilities\ninvests to maintain and improve services for customers and deliver further\nenvironmental benefits, as well as providing a positive contribution to the\nregional economy. Regulatory capital investment for 2013/14, including\ninfrastructure renewals expenditure, is expected to be around £800 million.\n\nWe continue to deliver improvements in customer service, underpinned by good\noperational performance. The ten water and sewerage companies have now\npublished their 2012/13 Ofwat key performance indicator reports and we are\npleased to report an above average performance across this range of operational\nmetrics. In addition, the ten companies have recently published their overall\nservice incentive mechanism (SIM) scores for 2012/13 and we were delighted to\nnote that United Utilities is again the most improved company over the year. We\nhave also made an encouraging start to the 2013/14 financial year, with our\nfirst quarter performance on Ofwat's qualitative SIM score showing a further\nimprovement in customer satisfaction.\n\nFinancial position\n\nUnited Utilities' financial position remains robust. Group net debt is\nmarginally lower, compared with the position at 31 March 2013, despite\ncontinued high levels of capital investment. This is before payment of the\nproposed 2012/13 final dividend, which is scheduled for 2 August 2013, and\ntotals approximately £156 million. Gearing remains stable and in the middle of\nOfwat's assumed range, supporting a solid ...