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Local reaction to Northumbrian Water takeover

The purchase of Northumbrian Water by a Hong Kong tycoon has come as good news for many in the region.

The FT reports that James Ramsbotham, chief executive of the North East Chamber of Commerce has reacted positively to the deal with CKI. Mr Ramsbotham has even gone as far as to say that it was good news that the company wasn’t bought by a rival UK utilities business, who might have focused on cost cutting over investment.

He said: “An investment business will be in there seeing how they can grow it, rather than just making efficiencies.”

He also noted that the deal illustrated the north-east’s ability to attract international investment. Nissan already has a plant in Sunderland, while SSI the steelmaker, and Hitachi are both planning to invest locally.

However, there are still some concerns that the deal could mean an exodus of management talent from the business.

Roberta Blackman Woods, MP for Durham City where Northumbrian Water has its head office said: “As a result of this takeover, we may have a management that is no longer so rooted locally and who will not understand the importance of those private-sector jobs in Durham”.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .