2005 - 2006 - Pinsent Masons Water Yearbook 2012

GERMANY PART 2: COUNTRY ANALYSIS
The municipalities and the private sector
Water provision in 2002
Entity Status Million m 3 pa
Gelsenwasser-Group Private 364
Berlinwasser Private 217
Gelsenwasser-AG Private 140
Lake Constance Water Municipal 133
Hamburg Water Municipal (considering PPP) 128
Westphalian Water PPP 117
Munich Water Municipal 116
Stuttgart Water Municipal 89
Hildersheim Water Municipal 80
Eastern Harz Water Municipal 76
Rhenish-Westphalian Water Municipal 70
Essen Water Public-Private 70
The market remains broadly in the hands of municipalities and by quasi-private companies directly
owned and controlled by municipalities. The best opportunities for private sector investment continue
to be seen in the Eastern Länder. In the east, water and sewerage are integrated at the municipal
level. They are separate in the west.
The EIB has been a major investor with municipal water projects in Germany, with €3,183 million of
loans disbursed between 1998-2002. In addition, the German Bank for Reconstruction has made a
number of major loans, including €900 million for water provision and sewerage. The EU is providing
€1,300 million in funding for water and environmental projects in the Eastern Lander between 2000
and 2006.
The Western Länder has 1,429 water supply companies and some 6,000 water and sewerage entities
in total. The desire to privatise sewerage in the Eastern Länder is stronger, with formal structures put
into place by the privatisation agency to encourage the setting up of JV's and the award of
concessions. Legal complications remain a problem, with the Rostock contract having been held
back for two years because of these.
Since 2002, there has been was an increase in the pace and scope of privatisation proposals. The
city of Dresden in Saxony has sold a 49% stake in Dresdner Stadtentwässerung to Gelsenwasser in
2004. DS treats 130,000m³ of waste and surface water daily for 475,000 households and 1,100
industrial customers. Gelsenwasser is also taking over Emmerich in North Rhine Westfalia’s
Abwasser Emmerich. Abwasser Emmerich provides wastewater disposal services for the town's
30,000 inhabitants. Gelsenwasser and EAM-Wasserversorgung (E.ON) have signed a 25 year
contract with Bad Karlshafen to take over operational management of the town’s water and
wastewater activities. E.ON’s Avacon (49%) and Vienenburg (51%) have formed a JV, a water and
wastewater company named WAGV Wasser-und Abwassergesellschaft Vienenburg. From 2003,
Avacon will also take over commercial operations and billing. Annual water sales in Vienenburg are
about 0.52million m³. Baden-Württemberg’s Emmingen-Liptingen will set up a new water supply
company from its public works water department, to start operations at the beginning of January 2004
and in Hesse, the town of Fränkisch-Crumbach is considering PSP. Energieversorgung Offenbach
(EVO) has a 25-year co-operation contract to operate water and wastewater operations for the parish
of Mainhausen. EVO traditionally supplies the towns of Offenbach and Dietzenbach with drinking
water and operates their wastewater services. The commune of Schwerin has become the first
commune in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern to enter into a wastewater PPP. Operational management
has been taken over by Wasser-Abwasser-Gesellschaft Schwerin, owned 51% by the municipal utility
Stadtwerke Schwerin and 49% by Eurawasser. Hamburg is also considering a partial privatisation of
Hamburger Wasserwerke (HWW). The state of Saxony Anhalt is seeking to sell its water supply
company Fernwasser Sachsen-Anhalt (FSA).
Consolidation in the public and private sectors continues. E.ON has consolidated its Northern
German operations, which supply 22,000 customers with water. These are Schleswag (Rendsburg),
Hein Gas (Hamburg) and the Hein Gas’ Eastern German subsidiary, HGW (Schwerin). Likewise, the
state of Thüringia is encouraging water associations to merge. The Abwasserzweckverband Wipper-
Ohne and Wasserzweckverband Eichsfelder Kessel are setting up the jointly-owned Wasser-und
Abwasserzweckverband Eichsfelder Kessel.
99 Pinsent Masons Water Yearbook 2005 – 2006