The new boss of under-fire South West Water owner Pennon has said the group must “rebuild trust” after being hit with a record near-£2 million fine following a parasitic outbreak in its supply in Devon.
Keith Haslett, who became chief executive on April 1, said Pennon “must learn lessons from this incident” after the group was prosecuted earlier this month at Exeter Magistrates’ Court for supplying water unfit for human consumption.
It comes as Devon council is now considering taking legal action to tackle sewage discharges and poor water quality in areas of the county.
The company was fined £1.853 million, with a surcharge of £2,000 and costs of £75,000 totalling £1.93 million, after the water supply in the Brixham area of Devon was contaminated in 2024 by cryptosporidium, a parasite which causes sickness and diarrhoea.
In Pennon’s full-year results on Wednesday, the group revealed a return to profit, with pre-tax profits of £114.4 million for the 12 months to March 31 against losses of £72.7 million the previous year.
Mr Haslett said he was “deeply saddened by the impact our business had on customers in the Brixham area during the 2024 cryptosporidium incident”.
“Whilst I have only been chief executive for a few weeks, it is very clear that we must learn lessons from this incident and work hard to rebuild trust with the customer and communities we serve, both in Brixham and beyond,” he said.
