Australia-based Macquarie Bank has called in four banks to arrange the debt to back its successful £8bn (€11.9bn) bid for Thames Water, the UK subsidiary of German power utility RWE.

Macquarie, which won the auction for the utility after bidding more than £500m more than its nearest rival, will work with Barclays Capital, HSBC, Dresdner Kleinwort and Royal Bank of Canada in underwriting up to £4bn of debt to secure the acquisition.