EnServe secures £100m Thames contract

Yorkshire-based EnServe’s water businesses, H2O Water Services and Metro Rod, have been selected to maintain and repair Thames Water’s recently adopted sewerage assets, along with their existing waste network in its London South Region.

EnServe, formerly FTSE-listed company Spice, is owned by European buyout firm Cinven, which acquired the company for £251m in 2010.

EnServe’s Yorkshire-based operations include energy services firm Freedom Group and H20 Water Services, which are located in Tingley, near Wakefield. The business operates from more than 30 bases across the United Kingdom, working in partnership with a number of commercial, public and utility organisations.

A recent change to water industry legislation means that UK water companies have adopted more than 220,000 kilometres of sewers which were previously under private ownership.

The eight-year contract with Thames Water will be delivered using Metro Rod’s franchise network. The contract is set to go live during August this year.

EnServe chief executive David Owens said: “This is a fantastic reward for all the effort by everyone involved in our bid and truly cements our position as one of the country’s leading water and drainage service providers.

“We are delighted that we have achieved this milestone and look forward to working with Thames Water, the UK’s largest water and waste water sewerage company.”

Metro Rod managing director Mike Walker said: “This deal underlines the company’s position at the forefront of the sector and is a glowing endorsement of the innovation and technical ability which helps us to deliver a top quality service for our clients.”

Metro Rod provides 24/7 waste water network maintenance services on commercial utility and private networks, while work by H2O Water Services is customer-facing, including the installation of water mains and services, meter installation and maintenance, leakage detection and repairs, and meter reading.

EnServe employs more than 3,000 people and in the year ending April 2011 it made pre-tax profit earnings of £26.2m on revenue of £300m. Last year, EnServe announced plans to double in size over four years.