Latest news with #nationalization
Globe and Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Private equity firm KKR drops out of rescue deal for British utility Thames Water
Thames Water suffered a major setback in its fight to avoid nationalization on Tuesday as it said U.S. private equity firm KKR had pulled out of a multibillion-pound rescue plan. Britain's biggest water supplier has been pushed to the edge by its £18-billion (US$24.35-billion) debt pile, and was banking on KKR investing about £4-billion in new equity to effectively buy the company. The government has said it is on standby in case Thames Water fails to recapitalize and needs to be temporarily nationalized in order to keep services running. 'The government is clearly keeping a very close eye on what's going on,' Environment Minister Steve Reed told LBC Radio on Tuesday, after Thames Water said KKR had pulled out. KKR declined to comment. Britain's Thames Water says fines need to be deferred to help company avoid state rescue Thames Water is at the centre of a public backlash against the privatized water sector which has been blamed for polluting Britain's rivers and seas while hiking bills, and prioritizing dividend payouts over investment in infrastructure. Public outrage over frequent sewage spills has prompted tough action from regulators, but Thames Water bosses have said punitive fines are hindering its efforts at a turnaround. Thames Water CEO Chris Weston warned in mid-May that in order to help the company attract equity and avoid a state rescue, it would need relief from fines estimated to come in at £900-million over the next five years. The government wants to reform the sector and has tasked former Bank of England deputy governor Jon Cunliffe with leading a commission to do so. He said on Tuesday regulation needed to be overhauled. While water companies needed to be held to account, action should be proportional, he said. 'It means being able to help companies and support them when they need to improve so they don't wind up in this spiral going down,' he told Sky News. KKR's withdrawal comes days after Thames was fined £123-million for sewage failures. The announcement sent Thames' bonds to record lows. Its 2040 bond dropped 4 pence in the pound to 69 pence while its euro-denominated April 2027 bond dropped 2 euro cents to just under 68 cents. Chairman Adrian Montague said KKR pulling out after two months of due diligence was 'disappointing.' Without fresh funding, Thames Water could run out of money in the middle of 2026. Montague said the company, which has 16 million customers in southern England, would talk to its senior creditors, who have presented their own plan, likely to involve some equity investment and a debt-for-equity swap. The creditors already effectively own the company after writeoffs by the previous shareholders. A creditor spokesperson declined to provide more details on their plan. While Environment Minister Reed acknowledged the situation was 'difficult,' he said the company was stable, adding that the government was ready to step in. Elected last July, the Labour government had promised to clean up Britain's waterways and get on top of the sewage scandal. But in setting up Cunliffe's water commission, it ruled out renationalization as an option. The interim report said risk in the sector needed to be reduced to attract investors willing to accept lower returns over the longer term.
CTV News
4 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Quebec Liberal leadership race: Economist Mario Roy shares his ‘big ideas'
The race to lead the Quebec Liberal Party is winding down. Voting is set to take place between June 9 and 14. CJAD 800 Radio spoke back to Mario Roy, an economist and a farmer from Beauce, bringing a fresh perspective to the Quebec Liberal leadership campaign, including plans to nationalize seniors' homes. Some answers have been edited for clarity. Makos: So what's your big bold idea, your number one big bold idea that you think defines your campaign? Roy: I started my campaign with one idea, one proposition that is completely different from the others, and that's going to be the number one that I'm bringing you today. I'm suggesting nationalizing residences for older people. The reason is that over the past decade we've lost a number of residences for older people all over the regions but all over Quebec. We've seen a lot of residences that have been closing over the past years, and I'm suggesting to nationalize them for two reasons. Mario Roy Mario Roy is vying to be leader of the Quebec Liberal Party. (CJAD 800 Radio) One, we need to keep residences all over Quebec to make sure that older people can stay closer to their family all their life, basically. And we want people to stay closer to their family to make sure that they can stay in their region. And that's one of the reasons why I'm suggesting it so we need to keep them open. The second reason is to open more when we see a lack of residences all over Quebec. Listen on CJAD 800 Radio: Quebec Liberal leadership hopeful Mario Roy wants to nationalize seniors' homes Makos: Obviously, the population is aging and I think you're speaking to a lot of people when you talk about some of those issues. But I do have to mention this, because the voting is very interesting for the Quebec Liberal Party leadership race, and there's an outside share going to the youth wing of the party. I'm wondering if that may not be something that would resonate with a younger member of the party, and if there is something that you would say that you're offering for that youth wing and for younger members of the Quebec Liberal Party. Roy: Honestly, I've been clear with the younger people in the party. I'm 31 years old, as Robert Bourassa did in the past. I want to have a clear and big place for young people in the government as [MNA] or minister. But in terms of propositions, we need to have a vision for the future of the party. What I'm suggesting to the members and what will be on the campaign for 2026 is based on a vision for Quebec. It's not based on the percentage of people voting for the party. So it's pretty clear. I understand your reasoning about the fact that, yes, the younger people have a bigger place in the race in terms of voting, but I'm confident that they will see the vision in what I'm suggesting and they will come in. Makos: I think it is interesting that you're looking towards the vision and the platform to win in a general election, which will happen next year. Part of that is the Liberal Party Quebec needs to reconnect with Quebecers in the regions, also needs to reconnect with francophones. What's your vision there? Your idea there to accomplish that? Roy: Another really important thing that is happening right now is having access to health-care services. I'm coming from Beauce, I know the reality of the region and for the party. It's clear that we need to reconnect to the people of the region, to the francophones. To do this, we need to bring solutions to what they really care about. And health-care services is one of the big issues happening right now, especially the farther you get from the cities, the higher the difficulty to get services. I'm suggesting, as the Collège des médecins is suggesting, to bring back people from the private sector to the public health-care sector. Because right now, the public health-care sector is getting destroyed by people leaving the sector, and I can understand this, because they have better working conditions. Makos: How are you going to get them back? Roy: We need to have leadership from the provincial party, as they have done for the people finishing their studies, and they are asking them to stay in the public health-care sector for five years. I'm telling all people, as we've done, we have done by Robert Bourassa when we created that public health-care system, we created it for a simple reason: to make sure that everybody receives their health-care service, no matter where they're from, no matter how much money they have, and that's one of the reasons why I'm in the race is to bring to make sure that we save that public health-care system. To do this, we need to first bring people back to the system because if we want to do surgeries, we need the people. If they leave, there's no way we can solve it. So right now, the CAQ government is trying to basically resolve an issue, but they are not looking at the sources of the problem, which is people leaving. I'm the only one in the race to bring back people in the public health-care system and make sure that everybody has a family doctor. Makos: Seniors care, health care — these are costly things you're going to need revenues to pay for that. You're an economist. You've got this farming background. What is your bold idea on fixing Quebec's economy to make us a prosperous place that can pay for social programs? Roy: We need to reduce paperwork, bureaucracy in general, in the government to make sure that we have public services that are efficient, first. Second, we need to create wealth. In order to do this, we have natural resources that we need. I'm suggesting to take them in the here instead of importing them, to create wealth, but in order to create wealth for the government and to pay for our services, I'm suggesting to nationalize natural gas instead of importing it, because right now, there's some conversation about the fact that we should look at a project — and I'm open to it — because everything that is consumed here should be transformed and produced here. That's my vision. In order to create that wealth for the government, the money needs to stay off the credit cards. And in order to do this, we need to nationalize natural gas. That's one thing that I'm suggesting to make sure that we have money and that that money stays with the Quebecers. I'm also suggesting removing the inter-provincial barriers, and having a real collaboration with the federal government about everything related to natural resources. We have the opportunity right now with the federal government, they are just waiting for us. We need to collaborate to make sure that we have a project that will be beneficial for Quebec, but for all of Canada. And by the way, I'm also suggesting to sign the Quebec constitution, which I'm the only one, again, to do it. The collaboration with the federal government is crucial if we want to have a Quebec that functions within Quebec and with the rest of Canada, because that's basically essential, and there's no reason why we shouldn't have signed this constitution by now.
Asharq Al-Awsat
25-05-2025
- Business
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Gov't Push Spurs Firms to Hire More Saudis
Saudi Arabia's drive to nationalize its labor force gathered pace in the first quarter of 2025, with more than 143,000 Saudis landing jobs thanks to government-backed employment programs, a 93% jump compared to the same period last year. The figures, announced by the Human Resources Development Fund (Hadaf), underline the growing impact of empowerment initiatives under the Kingdom's Vision 2030 reform plan. They also reflect a stronger alignment between public and private sector efforts to boost workforce participation. The surge in employment was fuelled by a wide array of support programs offered by the fund, including training, career counselling, and empowerment services, which benefited more than 1.18 million individuals in Q1 alone, marking a 4% year-on-year increase. The number of companies that tapped into these programs also rose to over 98,000, up 37% from the previous year. Nearly 94% of those were small, medium, or micro enterprises, indicating a broad base of impact across different regions and sectors of the Kingdom. Ali Al Eid, a human resources expert, told Asharq Al-Awsat that Hadaf's continued role in shaping the job market has strengthened its partnerships across industries and accelerated the empowerment of local talent. 'The high growth rate in employment support reflects a tangible shift in national empowerment strategies,' Al Eid said, adding that the programs are increasingly tailored to meet both immediate labor market needs and long-term ambitions. He noted that targeting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) was particularly significant, as they form the backbone of the local economy and often represent the segment most in need of support. 'The Saudi labor market is evolving rapidly, focusing on investing in local talent, promoting entrepreneurship, and expanding employment in promising sectors,' Al Eid said. 'Investing in human capital is the smartest route to economic sustainability, and we're now seeing the results of Vision 2030 in action.' Badr Al-Enzi, another HR consultant, highlighted the pivotal role played by Hadaf since the launch of Vision 2030, particularly in empowering young Saudis for private sector roles. He said Hadaf initiatives have enhanced job security and upskilled Saudis in technical and specialist fields, especially in fast-growing industries such as automotive manufacturing, logistics, digital technology, and app development. 'These programs were crucial in supporting Saudization policies rolled out by the Ministry of Human Resources,' Al-Enzi said. 'They also played a central role in boosting women's participation in the workforce, which has more than doubled from 17% in 2017 to 36% by the end of 2024.' Last year alone, around 437,000 Saudi nationals joined the private sector, bringing the total number of Saudis employed in the sector to nearly 2.4 million by the end of 2024. Al-Enzi added that 43.8% of Saudi working women now hold mid-to-senior managerial roles, signalling major strides in female empowerment and progress toward Vision 2030's targets. Hadaf disbursed 1.83 billion riyals ($488 million) in support programs during Q1 2025, a figure that reflects the scale of the Kingdom's investment in building a qualified capable workforce to steer its economic and social transformation.
Reuters
20-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Dutch state lowers its stake in ABN Amro to around 30%
AMSTERDAM, May 20 (Reuters) - The Dutch government has lowered its stake in ABN Amro ( opens new tab to around 30%, the lender said on Tuesday. The Dutch state had announced its intention to cut its stake last October. It held a majority of ABN Amro shares for years, but has been winding down its holding since early 2023. With its stake falling below one-third, from 40.5% previously, the state will no longer have prior approval rights on the issuance of shares or large investments and divestments by the bank. ABN Amro, one of three dominant banks in the Netherlands, was nationalised during the 2008 financial crisis, and re-privatised in 2015.
Globe and Mail
13-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Britain's Thames Water says fines need to be deferred to help company avoid state rescue
The bosses of Britain's Thames Water said the company needed relief from fines to help it avoid nationalization when they were questioned by lawmakers on Tuesday. Thames Water has been battling against financial collapse since last year. It is at the centre of a public backlash against the water sector which is blamed for polluting Britain's river and seas while also hiking bills. Thames Water is trying to strike a deal with financial investor KKR to invest new equity to help it avoid the government's Special Administration Regime, but its poor performance means it is likely to face huge fines. CEO Chris Weston said it would fail to secure equity unless regulators agreed to defer or reduce the fines. 'Discussing with the regulator the concept of a turnaround regime that might provide some relief from the normal regulatory environment while a company recovers its operations, I think that is an absolute imperative for Thames otherwise we will not be invested in,' Weston said. 'There is no point in continually penalizing someone if its going to exacerbate the situation.' The company's CFO Steve Buck said he was factoring in the potential for 900 million pounds ($1.19-billion) of penalties for the 2025-2030 period. Should Thames Water fail to attract new equity, debt investors could proceed with a debt for equity swap which would leave them in charge, Weston said. If that fails, Thames Water could enter SAR, a form of temporary nationalization. 'A SAR would be make life extremely difficult for everyone,' chairman Adrian Montague said. 'The government would have to finance this program, because there will be no other liquidity available.'
