Severn Trent plc plans to sell 50 of its sites. The firm said that the sale was part of its drive to dispose of non-core sites which are no longer part of its core business activity. They include a handful of water towers, such as Gaydon Water Tower near Lighthorne Heath, and several reservoirs including sites in Wem in Shropshire and Ullenhall in Warwickshire. Ted Pearce, Severn Trent’s Water director of property services said, “As these sites are now surplus to requirements, it makes sense to rationalize our property portfolio so we can concentrate our focus on our operational sites. These first 50 properties are mainly smaller ones with likely values of between £25,000 and £50,000 - the sort of thing you'll buy to add to your garden. They pose an opportunity for buyers to improve their own properties, or for smaller investors looking to increase their land holdings.” Severn Trent said its current disposal program had already attracted considerable attention from prospective private purchasers and the utility has received more than 600 expressions of interest. A Severn Trent spokeswoman said, “It's part of the rationalization of our property portfolio to make sure we concentrate on our core business activities. It makes sense for us to divest ourselves of them and use the income to concentrate more fully on our core activities.” The sites are due to go on the market over the next 18 months with the first sale expected in the first week of July. King Sturge, Savills (Nottingham), Shonki Brothers and Hall & Co are handling those properties which are scheduled for auction, while Knight Frank is dealing with the private treaty sales.

Severn Trent plc reported earnings results for the full year ended March 31, 2009. For the year, the company swung to a net loss of GBP 57.8 million for the fiscal year ended March 31, from a profit of GBP 209.5 million a year earlier. Revenue for the period rose 5.8% to GBP 1.64 billion. Excluding the impact of a deferred tax charges, the changing value of financial instruments and other one-off items, The company adjusted pretax profit fell 6.4% to GBP 273.5 million. The group said that it has delivered its planned operating cost savings for the year and is on track to deliver higher than targeted operating cost savings for fiscal 2010.

Severn Trent Plc announced that Gordon Fryett, Director of Property at Tesco, has been appointed a non-executive director of Severn Trent Plc and Severn Trent Water Limited from July 1, 2009. Mr. Fryett is also appointed a member of the Corporate Responsibility Committee of Severn Trent plc. Mr. Fryett has held a number of key roles in Tesco since joining the management development programme in 1972, including CEO of Tesco Ireland from 2001 to 2006 and Director of the International Support Office from 1998 to 2000.