Business Stream, the Scottish Water subsidiary spun off to enable competition in the business market, has reported its first set of full-year results.

Business Stream, the Scottish Water subsidiary spun off to enable competition in the business market, has reported its first set of full-year results.

The group, headed by Mark Powles, which has ceded a tiny proportion of the market to English-based competition since liberalisation last April, made a pre-tax profit of £13.7m in its last year as a unit of Scottish Water. That compares with £6.1m in its first five months as a separately-accounted business the previous year.

Turnover was £351m against £141m. Some £328m was "primary income" with the remainder from trade effluent services.

The business repaid its loans to Scottish Water and borrowed capital instead from a new Scottish Water holding subsidiary set up for the purpose in November 2007.

Net debt reduced from £53.2m to £31.9m during the year.

Powles received total remuneration of £198,200, and finance director Johanna Pow was paid £91,600, including £52,000 and £24,800 respectively in bonuses.

Both are members of the Strathclyde local government final salary pension scheme. One of its three non-executive directors, Ronnie Mercer, is remunerated directly by Scottish Water.

The company came under fire from the construction industry last autumn for delays in development site connections, but claimed it was focused on improvements.