Severn Trent today said costs associated with the summer's flooding crisis washed away profits growth in the first half.
The utility company, which serves 3.7 million household and business customers in England and Wales, posted pre-tax profits of £149.5 million for the six months to September 30, down 6.4% on a year earlier.
Severn Trent took a £18.2 million hit from Gloucestershire's summer floods - the biggest single incident faced by the UK water industry - but stressed that the financial cost to the company was still to be fully evaluated.
It estimates an overall cost of £25 million to £35 million, offset by insurance recoveries of between £10 million and £20 million. Today's one-off charge included £5 million of interim insurance payments.
The unprecedented summer weather saw the rivers Avon and Severn burst their banks and forced the evacuation of the company's Mythe Water treatment works near Tewkesbury. Full restoration of supplies was achieved after 17 days. Shares were up marginally 31p to 1,493 pence.