Infrastructure heads leave Omers

(by Verity Mitchell)

The first few months of the year are the time for strategic staff reviews in financial services. At Omers Infrastructure, Alastair Hall — senior managing director, Europe — has resigned. Digital infrastructure lead Chris Hogg has also departed. Hogg was a lead executive overseeing Deutsche Glasfaser, a German internet infrastructure company which Omers, owning 49% along with other investors, has had to refinance.

Hall’s legacy, as head of Omers' European investment activities from 2021, was his handling of the stake in Thames Water acquired in 2017. His departure comes 20 months on from Omers’ decision to write down its entire 31.7% stake in Thames Water in May 2024. In 2021, the stake was valued by Omers at £990m, dwindling in value to zero.

Michael Hill, global head of infrastructure at Omers, justified the Thames write down in 2024 as the ‘right fiduciary call’. This compares with Omers’ original upbeat assessment of the return potential from the investment in 2017, where it pledged to support Thames through AMP6: “The geographical area the company serves is amongst the most densely populated and economically vibrant in Europe and Thames Water’s commitment to deliver high quality customer service and value for money will receive our full support.”