Vol 6, Issue 11 (November 2005)

Need to know

• CONFERENCE TIME

  * It has been conference time in Europe with Britain, Germany and Italy each holding their main industry conferences last month.

• DOOSAN DOINGS

  * Doosan Heavy Industries has acquired part of American Engineering Services in order to break into the reverse osmosis desalination market. It sounds like a hippopotamus marrying a minnow.

• FRENCH FIGURES

  * Veolia has shown that it can still squeeze spectacular growth out of Europe.

• THE WAR ON DESAL

  * Meanwhile over in California, the war on private desalination plants shows no sign of let-up.

• TREADING WATER

  * Zenon, the Canadian membrane bioreactor specialist, has taken one step forward in the US patent courts and one step back in the European patent courts.

Analysis

• Insight - David Lloyd Owen

  Climate change and the Water Framework Directive.

• RWE hands victory to the French model

  The difference between RWE Thames\' return on capital employed and weighted average cost of capital. A net loss.

General

• AquaFed pitches for private water

  The French water industry veteran has returned to fight the corner for private water companies.

• China\'s desal strategy

  A new high level government report sets some ambitious targets for new desalination plants, but there is a nasty catch for foreign companies.

• Focus on performance, says Veolia boss

  Veolia Water Europe CEO Cyril Roger-Lacan is worried that the water sector might end up like the healthcare sector unless performance is put back on the agenda.

• Framework Directive looms large

  The cost of implementing the Directive by 2015 will be astronomical. How much of the burden will fall on water companies?

• German water jittery over sales tax discrepancy

  Differential tax rates are a major obstacle to modernising the German water sector. Change is on the horizon.

• Getting to grips with Italy\'s non-reform

  Everyone agrees that Italy’s water sector reform has been a disappointment. A new monitoring unit has been set up to track problems.

• Hesse challenges Germany\'s cosy consensus

  German water companies hope benchmarking will be an acceptable alternative to competition. A tougher stance may be required if customers are to see any benefits.

• Hyflux breaks ground in Tianjin

  Singapore\'s desalination sensation has brought in a new investor to share the cost of its expansion into China.

• Italy\'s €55 billion challenge

  Italy’s water and wastewater infrastructure needs a lot of money – reform or no reform.

• Malaysia: still waiting for reform

  Development finance editor Olivia Jensen reviews recent progress towards restructuring the country’s water sector.

• Marubeni’s change of heart

  In 2004, the Japanese company would have nothing to do with Saudi deals. Since then it has agreed to develop a power and water plant for the Rabigh refinery and is looking like a serious contender for the Shuqaiq IWPP.

• More Spanish success in Algerian desal market

  The North African state is fast becoming a second home for Spanish desalination companies.

• Shoaiba heads for financial close

  The developers are seeking to raise about $2 billion of project finance debt.

• The 2006 Global Water Awards

  Marketing manager Alison Ireland explains what is new from GWI in her new monthly column.

• Veolia\'s rising star

  Who is Cyril Roger-Lacan?

• Water prices on the rise in Spain

  Spain is starting to reform its tariffs in advance of the Water Framework Directive.

Brief

• ASIA IN BRIEF

  Manila Water posted strong earnings growth for the third quarter to September and has been added to the ‘blue chip’ 30- company composite index of the Philippines Stock Exchange.

• CHART OF THE MONTH

  In the past two years, no one has bettered the price for desalinated water achieved by VID at Ashkelon or Hyflux at Tuas.

• CHINA IN BRIEF

  Discussing the 11th five-year programme (2006-10), Wang Shucheng, the Chinese Minister of Water Resources, unleashed the usual investment forecast vertigo.

• LATIN AMERICA IN BRIEF

  RWE Thames has taken its Chilean water companies, including Essbio, Essel and Aguas Nuevo Sur Maule, off the market after Southern Cross dropped its offer for the company by 10%.

• MIDDLE EAST IN BRIEF

  Middle East power and water developers are being kept busy in the final quarter of the year, particularly now the holy month of Ramadan is over.

Companies

• Paying the price for paying too much

  Larry Chertoff talks to industry leaders about where next for American Water.

• RWE finally loses patience with water

  The decision to sell Thames and American will put an end to a very expensive excursion into the water sector by the German utility.

Market insight

• Local approaches to a global challenge

  David Lloyd Owen, author of the Pinsent Masons Water Yearbook, finds reason for optimism about the private water sector after three years on the defensive.

• Local approaches to a global challenge cont. #1

  cont.

• Local approaches to a global challenge cont. #2

  cont.