Ruth Jefferson to lead Wessex Water, as Colin Skellett stays on as group chief executive

Wessex Water’s chief executive of 36 years, Colin Skellett, is to hand over the reins to Ruth Jefferson by the autumn, though will stay on as group chief executive with overall responsibility for all of YTL’s UK activities.

These were among the changes announced to the YTL UK/Wessex Water Group last week.

Jefferson (pictured left) is currently Wessex Water’s chief compliance officer and group general counsel. She joined the company in 2016 after a legal career in London and Bristol, specialising in competition law, and was appointed to the Wessex board in 2022.

Skellett (pictured right) has been Wessex Water’s chief executive since 1988, and in continuing as group chief executive, the water company will remain part of his overall group.

YTL/Wessex also announced the formation of a new company, YTL Construction UK, which will be headed up by Wessex Water’s chief operating officer John Thompson. The construction operation will bring together YTL’s expertise and access to Asian markets with Wessex Water’s construction capabilities, and is being designed to both help deliver Wessex Water’s enlarged investment programme for AMP8 and to compete in the wider UK market.

The changes will be phased in between now and the end of September.