United Utilities has today announced an equity issue to raise gross proceeds of c. £800 million to fully fund the equity element of c. £2.5 billion of its incremental investment for the AMP8 period 2025-30.

The Equity Issue is to comprise the issue of new ordinary shares of 5 pence each in the capital of the company through:

• a non-pre-emptive placing of shares to institutional investors at the Placing Price to raise gross proceeds of c. £800 million;
• as part of the placing, the Company has received a cornerstone commitment from ATLAS Infrastructure with the Future Fund to participate in the Placing in respect of £400 million in aggregate
• a retail offer via RetailBook to provide retail investors in the United Kingdom with an opportunity to acquire new Ordinary Shares at the Placing Price ; and
• a subscription by certain directors of the company, pursuant to which they intend to subscribe for c. £200,000 in aggregate, in each case at the Placing Price (the "Subscription Shares") (the "Subscription").

The Placing will be conducted through an accelerated bookbuild which will be launched immediately following the release of the announcement.

Highlights include:

• Guidance for AMP8 capital investment programme increased to c. £11.5 billion, up from c. £9 billion, representing c. £2.5 billion of incremental investment
• Incremental investment to support housing and industrial growth in the region, AI-driven industrial development, proactive asset replacement and environmental improvements
• c. £1.4 billion of incremental investment programme submitted to Ofwat today with the balance of the c. £2.5 billion expected via future Re-openers
• Asset base now expected to grow at 10% CAGR through to 20302, up from prior guidance of 7%
• Upgraded financial framework: targeting regulatory returns of 10-11% in AMP8, an increase of 100 basis points versus prior guidance
• Funding the equity element of the c. £2.5 billion incremental capex through a c. £800 million placing, with gearing to remain within target range of 55-65% through AMP8

Background to the Equity Issue and the 2026 Re-opener submission

United Utilities explained that since the PR24 Final Determination in December 2024, the scale and urgency of infrastructure investment required across the North West has increased significantly. Mandatory housing targets for local authorities in the region have increased, with 66,000 additional homes expected to be built by 2030. The Government's declaration of data centres as Critical National Infrastructure and the launch of the AI Growth Zone initiative have generated significant new demand for water capacity in Greater Manchester that was not reflected in the Company's PR24 business plan. HyNet, one of the UK's largest industrial decarbonisation programmes, has been confirmed as a highest priority programme in the Government's Major Projects Portfolio.

The water company has today separately submitted proposals to Ofwat under the AMP8 Re-opener process, requesting approval for c.£1.4 billion of incremental investment. Plans for a further c.£1.2 billion of investment are expected to be submitted for approval through subsequent submissions in 2027 and 2028 and transitional investment into AMP9, taking total incremental investment to c. £2.5 billion and total AMP8 capital investment to c. £11.5 billion.

Investment proposals under Ofwat Reopener programme

The 2026 Re-opener submission comprises investment into the following areas:

Growth programme (c. £770 million): The programme will deliver new water infrastructure for data centres in East Manchester (c. £200 million), non-potable water supply to the clean energy cluster in Ellesmere Port (c. £220 million), and wastewater treatment capacity upgrades at 34 sites to support 66,000 new homes across the region (c. £350 million). The investment is expected to support over 4,000 new jobs in the supply chain, in addition to the 30,000 jobs already supported by the Company's existing AMP8 programme.

Proactive asset replacement (c. £410 million): The programme will proactively address five asset classes – gravity sewers, water network storage, trickling filters, rapid gravity filters and boreholes.

Windermere gated process and strategic water resources (c. £190 million): Investment covering 10 projects across Windermere progressing through Ofwat's large schemes gated process (c. £110 million) and acceleration of strategic water resource development across the region (c. £80 million).

Ofwat's draft decisions on the 2026 submission are expected on 15 August 2026, with final decisions on 15 December 2026.