Jan 10 (Reuters) - British water company Pennon Group on Wednesday acquired the holding company of Sutton and East Surrey (SES) Water for an enterprise value of 380 million pounds (about $482 million), in a bid to expand its foothold in Southern England.

Pennon also announced a new share issue to raise up to 180 million pounds in connection with the deal.

The acquisition comes as the company is making hefty investments to tackle water quality, leakage and pollution issues, amid intense regulatory scrutiny.

"SES Water is a fantastic fit for Pennon as we further expand our presence in water supply across Southern England, building on our successful similar acquisitions of Bournemouth Water and Bristol Water alongside the adoption of water supply in the Isles of Scilly," said Pennon Group CEO Susan Davy.

Sumisho Osaka Gas Water UK, the holding company of SES Water and other ancillary businesses, has a customer base of over 750,000, according to Pennon.

($1 = 0.7881 pounds) (Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Varun H K)