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(Sharecast News) - Water firm United Utilities said on Friday that trading remained in line with expectations ahead of its interim results on 12 November, with financial guidance for FY26/27 unchanged and regulatory returns still targeted at 10% to 11% for AMP8.
United Utilities said delivery of its AMP8 capital programme continued to progress well, with projects moving through the investment cycle as planned, and that it remains on track to invest around £2bn in FY26/27 and roughly £11.5bn across AMP8, supporting compound assetbase growth of about 10%.
The FTSE 100-listed firm also reiterated that it expects to access around £2.5bn of investment through the annualised AMP8 reopener mechanism. As part of that process, it has submitted its response to Ofwat's 2026 Cost Change Draft Decision, seeking backing for around £1bn of investment to enhance network resilience, expand water and wastewater capacity and support economic growth across the North West.
United's response included additional evidence for several projects and proposed revised funding arrangements for industrial growth schemes, with £191m of strategic infrastructure progressing through a gated mechanism and £79m of assetspecific work funded directly.
It stated that its riskbased approach aligned investment with emerging demand, protected customer value and ensured strategic industrial growth can be supported as requirements become clearer. United Utilities added that it was looking forward to Ofwat's final decision in December.
As of 0910 BST, United Utilities shares were up 0.72% at 1,408p..
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
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