Pennon Group has announced the creation of a new Chief Asset Officer role, appointing Ian Christie to strengthen the company’s long-term asset resilience, performance and investment decision-making.
Pennon Group confirmed that Ian Christie, currently Managing Director for Water Services, Capital Delivery and Asset Planning at Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, will join the business on 4 May 2026 as a member of the Pennon Executive.
The newly created Chief Asset Officer position is intended to place asset health at the centre of strategic decision-making across the Group, supporting service delivery, environmental protection and long-term investment planning.
Asset management at the centre of long-term planning
Pennon is currently delivering a £3.2 billion investment programme for the 2025–2030 period, focused on customers, the environment and local communities. The company said strong, well-maintained assets will be essential to delivering reliable day-to-day services while meeting increasingly demanding environmental and regulatory expectations.
Looking ahead over five-, ten- and twenty-five-year horizons, Pennon noted that asset management will play an increasingly central role in responding to the evolving regulatory landscape, including the direction set out in Jon Cunliffe’s review of the water sector and the Government’s white paper, A new vision for water.
Centralising asset expertise across the Group
Ian Christie brings extensive experience in asset management, operational delivery and system planning. In his new role, he will lead a move to bring existing asset management teams together into a single, centralised function that will work in partnership with Pennon’s operational businesses.
David Sproul, Executive Chairman of Pennon Group, said the new role reflects the importance of asset health to the company’s future strategy.
“Creating a Chief Asset Officer role is a deliberate and important step as we continue to strengthen our focus on asset health and reliability, supporting the successful delivery of our current and future business plans,” he said. “Our assets underpin everything we do, from the services customers rely on every day to our ability to protect the environment and deliver value over the long term.”
He added that the role has been developed with the full support of Keith Haslett, Pennon’s incoming Chief Executive, and aligns with rising expectations around performance, resilience and sustainability.
Supporting future investment decisions
Commenting on his appointment, Ian Christie said the new position signals a clear commitment to asset management as a strategic priority.
“Developing a deeper understanding of asset health and how it shapes the service we provide to customers and the environment, both now and into the future, will be critical to making informed investment decisions in a changing regulatory landscape,” he said.
Further coverage on leadership appointments and asset management across the water sector is available in the H2O Global News Companies section.
