Yorkshire Water CEO Receives £1.3m Undisclosed Payments Amidst Company's Poor Performance

Yorkshire Water's CEO, Nicola Shaw, has received £1.3m in undisclosed payments from the company's off-shore parent firm, Kelda Holdings, in addition to her £585,000 base salary and £371,000 bonus for the 2023-24 financial year. The payments were not declared in the company's annual report, and were only revealed after an investigation by The Guardian. The Government's water industry regulator is currently assessing whether these payments break the bonus ban imposed on Yorkshire Water due to its poor performance.

Key Takeaways:

The £1.3m in undisclosed payments to Nicola Shaw was made by Kelda Holdings, Yorkshire Water's Jersey-registered parent company, and was not declared in the company's annual report.
The payments were only revealed after an investigation by The Guardian, and the Government's water industry regulator is currently assessing whether they break the bonus ban.
In 2023-24, Nicola Shaw's overall remuneration package was £1.7m, including a base salary of £585,000, a bonus of £371,000, and additional benefits of £72,000.
In 2024-25, Nicola Shaw decided not to take a bonus, but her overall pay was £689,000, with the Kelda Holdings payment pushing it up to £1.35m.
The additional payments to Nicola Shaw have been criticized by the Ilkley Clean River Campaign, which has questioned how she can execute her role as CEO while taking on additional work with Kelda Holdings, given Yorkshire Water's appalling performance.
Yorkshire Water has been banned from paying bonuses for the 2024-25 financial year due to poor performance, including sewage spills and poor water quality.
The company has agreed to pay regulator Ofwat a £40m fine, and its debt has risen from £4.2bn to £6.8bn in the last seven years, requiring £275m to be spent each year servicing the interest.

Statistics:

£1.3m: the amount in undisclosed payments received by Nicola Shaw from Kelda Holdings.
2023-24: the financial year in which Nicola Shaw received the undisclosed payments.
£585,000: Nicola Shaw's base salary for 2023-24.
£371,000: Nicola Shaw's bonus for 2023-24.
£72,000: additional benefits received by Nicola Shaw in 2023-24.
£1.7m: Nicola Shaw's overall remuneration package for 2023-24.
£1.35m: Nicola Shaw's overall pay for 2024-25, including the Kelda Holdings payment.
70%: Yorkshire Water's debt to equity ratio, described as unstable by regulator Ofwat.
£6.8bn: the company's debt in the last seven years.
£275m: the annual amount spent servicing the interest on Yorkshire Water's debt.

Sources:

"Yorkshire Water boss pay: £1.3m off-shore payments revealed" by The Guardian.
"Yorkshire Water CEO receives £1.3m in undisclosed payments on top of salary and bonus" by The Yorkshire Post.
"Serious pollution incidents by Yorkshire Water almost triple in 2024" by The Yorkshire Post.