Zaragoza opens wastewater services to private sector

Aragón’s capital city Zaragoza has invited bids from private sector companies to run a 40-year municipal concession covering wastewater collection and treatment in the city.

The winning bidder will receive a 49% share in Ecociudad Zaragoza, the company recently created to run sewage collection and wastewater treatment services for the city’s 700,000 inhabitants, in return for an initial ‘canon’ of between €45 and €58 million and an ongoing annual payment of €1.5 million.

Bidders can also opt to build two new WWTPs to cover city neighbourhoods left without wastewater treatment following the failure of FCC’s Utebo concession, part of the Aragón regional government’s faltering special wastewater plan.

The operation aims “to make management more cost-efficient and to obtain private sector capital for wastewater infrastructure,” a council spokesman told GWI.
Zaragoza’s drinking water provision will remain under municipal management. Agbar subsidiary Aquagest currently manages water metering and billing in the city.