Severn Trent : Canada's Borealis renews pursuit of Severn Trent: Sunday Times

The newspaper reported that the two sides opened talks last month and discussions were still at an early stage.

In 2013 Severn Trent rejected a series of takeover offers by LongRiver Partners, an investment fund consortium including Borealis Infrastructure, saying they did not reflect the firm's long-term value.

Severn may be more susceptible to a bid now, the newspaper said citing sources close to the situation, as the industry regulator has imposed tighter profit rules for the next five years and the company has also had a change of chief executive.

(Reporting by Kylie MacLellan; Editing by Hugh Lawson)