Environment Secretary Steve Reed signed off the appointment of FTI Consulting to act as an administrator in case Thames fails to secure funding from lenders, Sky News reported.
Contingency plans could see Britain’s biggest water firm placed into a special administration regime (SAR), meaning it would be put into an insolvency process.
A spokeswoman for the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) said: “The Government will always act in the national interest on these issues.
“The company remains financially stable, but we have stepped up our preparations and stand ready for all eventualities, including applying for a special administration regime if that were to become necessary.”
Thames Water, which has 16…