The outgoing boss of a debt-ridden firm has a range of properties including a £1 million penthouse in Edinburgh.
Ian Marchant, 62, is stepping down as chairman of Thames Water and leaving behind £14 billion worth of debt after the water supplier had crisis talks with the Government this week, reports the Daily Mirror.
Marchant is being replaced as chair after more than five years, but should have no trouble making ends meet after he makes his exit this month due to his burgeoning property portfolio.
In 2015 he splashed out a whopping £975,000 for the three-bedroom penthouse with four terraces, in a block of eight apartments in Edinburgh.
As well as his luxury apartment in the capital city he also has a plush beachside property.
The seaside home with a heated pool in Bognor Regis, West Sussex, was bought for £925,000 in 2010.
A brochure for the gated development says the “elegant and private retreat provides outstanding modern architecture immersed in green natural surroundings”.
Thames Water, which has 15m customers, was also hit this week by the resignation of its chief executive Sarah Bentley, as it slips from one crisis to another.
Marchant earned a fortune as chairman of the company that is leaking hundreds of millions of litres of water every day.
He was paid £325,000 in 2021/2 and £460,000 in 2020/1. On Thursday it said Sir Adrian Montague will become its new director and chairman on July 10 .
The firm thanked its old chair for “the leadership [he] has demonstrated in guiding Thames Water through a challenging period for the water industry”.
Mr Marchant said he was “delighted to be handing the chair reins to Adrian”.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “That the Thames Water chairman is paid hundreds of thousands of pounds to oversee a failing company while hard working families struggle with rising bills is a shocking indictment of the privatised water industry.”
A Thames Water spokesman said: “Finding and fixing leaks is a top priority... We’re repairing over 1,300 per week.” The company did not comment on Ian Marchant’s properties.
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