Thames Water has announced the replacement of 19km of water pipes in Loughton, Essex.

The firm said the £30M-worth of work will help boost reliability in the area and is part of its overall £20bn network upgrade scheme.

The Loughton programme, which has begun, will last for around three years, and see work taking place on more than 60 roads.

It will have benefits in reducing leaks and bursts, helping the network cope with population increases, the company said in a statement.

Thames Water director of infrastructure delivery Mark Taylor said: “Our purpose is to deliver life’s essential service, so our customers, communities and the environment can thrive.

“It’s vital that we upgrade our ageing infrastructure and our work across Loughton will provide greater resilience to the area and a better service for customers.”

He added: “It’s another piece of the work we are doing across the region to upgrade our network and provide the best quality service we can for years to come.”

Epping Forest councillor Chidi Nweke said he welcomed the investment in Loughton’s water network.

Thames Water is the UK’s biggest water and wastewater services provider, with around 16 million customers across London, the Thames Valley and surrounding areas.

The company, founded as a private entity in 1989, has been attempting to carry out a restructure for more than a year in a bid to improve its financial situation.

It is attempting to write-off more than a third of its large debt according to reports, in order to obtain billions-worth of new capital.

Ofwat is currently negotiating with the company over whether it can carry out the plan.

In February, more than 20 opposition and backbench MPs urged the regulator to reject the proposed deal arguing the package would short-change customers, weaken environmental protections and shirk accountability.

In an article for the Telegraph earlier this week, Hong Kong-based investment giant CK Infrastructure called for Thames Water to be placed into taxpayer-backed special administration so it can be sold off under an open competition.

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