Pennon Group’s new Chief Financial Officer has hit the ground running after a strong start to life at the Exeter-based company.
Steve Buck barely had his feet under the table when CEO Susan Davy announced the Group would be purchasing South East-based SES Water, but it’s nothing the experienced CFO isn’t used to dealing with.
Steve has been formally welcomed to Pennon after previously spending four years in the same role at Anglian Water Group, where his broad remit covered finance, treasury, regulation, and transformation.
Steve also has significant regulated utilities and energy sector experience and a proven track record of driving performance. He brings PLC experience from senior roles at Centrica PLC and British Gas, following an earlier career spanning over 16 years in the water sector.
This insight and experience will be invaluable to Pennon as it now works with regulators to complete the smooth acquisition and integration of SES over the next year. Steve will be spearheading the process with Chief Executive Officer Susan Davy who has led on numerous successful acquisitions for the FTSE 250 listed business since becoming CEO in 2020.
The purchase of SES marks a continuation of Pennon’s growth strategy under Susan’s leadership, building on the value-creating acquisitions of Bournemouth Water and Bristol Water in the last few years.
Susan Davy, Group Chief Executive Officer, said:
“I’m delighted to start working with Steve. He brings us further water sector expertise, broad regulated utilities sector knowledge, and experience of listed companies. Steve is already a great asset to our Group as we embark on the next chapter in our growth strategy for Pennon, starting with the acquisition of SES Water, and in our continued investment in the UK Water sector.”
Steve Buck, Chief Financial Officer, added:
“I’m really pleased to have started at Pennon, especially with their strong track record in the water sector as well as ambitious future investment plans under Susan’s guidance. It’s an exciting time for us following our purchase of SES Water, and I look forward to working with Susan and all our colleagues to help take the business to the next phase of our development.”
