Water

UK water-scarcity fix may pour billions down drain

22 Mar 2019

Climate change and population growth could cause chronic shortages by 2050. Whitehall’s preference is to target individual consumption and talk up costly infrastructure. It would be smarter and cheaper to push the biggest users – business and the power industry – to cut back.

The Exchange: The water-crisis marathoner

19 Mar 2019

Investors and companies are ill prepared for the rising scarcity of this most important natural resource. With World Water Day on March 22, Thirst CEO Mina Guli lays out the issues and explains why she decided to run 100 marathons in 100 days to draw attention to the problem.

Investors and citizens try to dam U.S. water risk

1 Mar 2019

An Ohio city voted to protect Lake Erie by granting it rights similar to humans'. Investors managing $6.5 trln want fast-food giants like McDonald's to reduce suppliers' pollution. It's welcome pushback against lax business practices and President Trump's environmental neglect.

World will improve where it matters most in 2019

24 Dec 2018

By next December, more people will have electricity and clean water. Child deaths are likely to be rarer and education more common. In future years, the pace of gains could accelerate. The open question is whether progress will undermine prosperity by also bringing more conflict.

What makes Connecticut Water so tantalizing?

6 Aug 2018

SJW is now paying a one-third premium for the staid Nutmeg State utility. It may flush away rival bidder Eversource and stalker California Water. But the investment return will be low. It only makes sense as a way to invest in infrastructure and prepare for a wave of water deals.

Franco-Dutch utility deal muddies U.S. M&A waters

31 Jul 2018

Suez is selling a fifth of its stateside unit to pension manager PGGM for 30 times earnings. The $601 mln transaction looks even pricier than the takeover battles for two other U.S. water utilities. With asset scarcity making the market frothy, buyers risk ending up high and dry.

U.S. water utilities heading for M&A rapids

11 Jul 2018

A four-way merger battle has shaken up the highly fragmented industry meeting in Minneapolis this week. California is pushing smaller utilities together, and energy firms are looking at H2O deals, too. With $4.8 trln of water infrastructure spending needed, bigger looks better.

Permian drillers tap new resource in wastewater

14 Jun 2018

U.S. shale operators extract four times more water than oil from wells in West Texas. Disposing the dirty liquid is costly and threatens growth. But some companies are treating and reusing water to cut costs. A few even could turn this into a second business in a parched world.

Water M&A mudslinging does no one any favors

7 Jun 2018

A cold war between four utilities is heating up. Frustrated California Water is launching a hostile $1.4 bln bid for local rival SJW. SJW’s preferred Connecticut partner, also in Eversource’s sights, is grudgingly seeking other offers. It may be too late to keep watchdogs happy.

Water M&A wars leave investors unusually placid

2 May 2018

The four-way fight over SJW’s bid for Connecticut Water is boiling over with accusations, intransigence, governance issues and proxy battles - none of it from shareholders. They’re either taking a surprisingly long-term view, or assuming hostile offers for utilities never work.

Water M&A fight puts governance center stage

24 Apr 2018

Eversource’s bid to upset SJW’s $750 mln deal with CWS is a close call on financial grounds. The interloper feels unfairly shut out, though, because SJW’s CEO ran the target until last year. And Eversource’s last big merger was messy. Watchdogs have to navigate choppy currents.

Tyson saves water reform from the slaughterhouse

4 Apr 2018

The largest U.S. meat producer aims to improve environmental practices on 2 mln acres of suppliers’ land, weeks after Tyson’s founding family used supervoting stock to nix a shareholder resolution along similar lines. The company has much more to do, but at least it’s listening.

The Exchange: CDP’s water boss

23 Mar 2018

Cate Lamb works with shareholders managing some $90 trln of assets to push companies to address water-scarcity and flood risks. She explains what can be done to mitigate the problem – and how doing too little costs businesses billions and can sink economic growth.

Investors can get a natural kick out of water

22 Mar 2018

Huge, costly and time-consuming infrastructure projects dominate plans for solving the world’s H2O issues. But nature-based solutions such as restoring forests and soil can yield quicker results for decent returns. They also come with sustainable-investing bragging rights.

Market tools can slake Cape Town’s water thirst

19 Mar 2018

The South African city’s taps may not run dry this year, but low rainfall, population growth and invasive flora keep the threat alive. Poor governance adds to the risk. Tradable water rights could bypass many of those problems, and set an example for other arid regions.

H2O merger an important drop in $730 bln bucket

15 Mar 2018

That’s how much U.S. water utilities may be worth. Yet a deal creating the sector’s third-largest listed company values it at just $1.9 bln. The fragmented industry needs more tie-ups to cover rising costs and investment needs. Otherwise the country’s water quality could suffer.

Suez public sector blowback makes for sorry trend

24 Jan 2018

Shares in the French water group fell 16 percent after a profit warning. Utility-like groups with long-term public contracts typically enjoy a low cost of capital. But having governments as clients is no safeguard, as Veolia and Carillion have already shown.

Private equity taps new pockets to extend water bet

3 Nov 2017

Investors led by a Rockefeller, Mellon and Harriman family LBO vehicle have made a sixfold paper profit on their 2014 buyout of Evoqua. IPO buyers won’t get near that even after a decent debut. But Evoqua’s status as a takeover target should make both sets of owners happy.

U.S.-Mexico water deal will get investment flowing

27 Sep 2017

The two countries set aside broader trade disputes in a new pact to share the Colorado River. More cooperation gives clarity to the 40 mln people who rely on the waterway. It will also help secure the billions needed for conservation, reusing water and upgrading infrastructure.

Viewsroom: Harvey’s path of financial destruction

7 Sep 2017

Texas is facing $180 bln in hurricane cleanup costs, the most of any U.S. natural disaster. The Lone Star State has the wherewithal and chutzpah to cover a large chunk, yet expects Washington to pick up most of the tab. Global water risks, meanwhile, may require $12 trln to fix.