Water Supply Services in Spanish Cities and the Debate on Private Participation in Their Management: Which Model is Most Efficient?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martín Sevilla-Jimenez ◽  
Teresa Torregrosa ◽  
Julian López-Milla ◽  
Jose Perles-Ribes
Keyword(s):  
Private Sector ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Public Management ◽  
Municipal Services ◽  
Political Debate ◽  
Private Companies ◽  
Private Participation ◽  
Ministry Of Finance ◽  
Concession Contract ◽  
Water Supply Services

Abstract Supplying water to the population is one of the fundamental services of any Spanish city given the importance of the good itself, regardless of how it is managed. However, it is sometimes seen more as a source of extra finance for the municipality, and, in recent years, as an issue of political debate in terms of the adequacy of one form of management or another: public or private. Currently, 35% of Spain's population is supplied by public specialised entities, 33% by private companies under a concession contract, 22% by mixed companies and 10% by undifferentiated municipal services. In simple terms, 45% corresponds to public management and 55% is fully or partially managed by the private sector. By analysing the annual accounts of the companies that operate in the Spain's principal municipalities, this study seeks to determine the role played by the private sector in the management of the mixed companies. Due to the diversity of services provided by these companies and the lack of differentiated statistics for each of them, we have used the Annual Accounts presented to the Central Mercantile Register or the data submitted to the Ministry of Finance in order to assess the influence of private participation on the results of the companies.

Private Operation of Water Utilities and Public Asset Holding Companies – Winning Combination or Losing Battle?

2007 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-163
Author(s):  
Michel Kerf ◽  
Elisa Muzzini
Keyword(s):  
Private Sector ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Holding Companies ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Private Sector Participation ◽  
Private Participation ◽  
Asset Holding ◽  
Pros And Cons ◽  
Exclusive Or ◽  
Water Supply And Sanitation

Several African governments, like others throughout the world, have been experimenting for some time with private sector participation in the provision of water supply and sanitation services. Some of these governments, though not all, decided to establish asset holding companies, in an effort to facilitate the transition to private participation. Those asset holding companies are state-owned entities entrusted with exclusive or partial responsibility for one or more of the following tasks: (i) owning infrastructure assets; (ii) planning and financing investments in the water supply and sanitation sector; (Hi) regulating the activities of the private operator; and (iv) promoting public acceptance of private sector participation in the sector. The present paper discusses a number of African experiences with private sector participation in water supply and sanitation – some of which involved the creation of such asset holding companies and some of which did not – in an attempt to shed light on the pros and cons of establishing asset holding companies in the context of water supply and sanitation reform. The paper concludes that asset holding companies might have a comparative advantage only with respect to one of the functions listed above – the planning and financing of investments – and then only in some specific circumstances.

A survey of critical success factors for attracting private sector participation in water supply projects in developing countries

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ernest Effah Ameyaw ◽  
Albert P.C. Chan ◽  
De-Graft Owusu-Manu
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Critical Success Factors ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Water Services ◽  
Water Sector ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Critical Success ◽  
Private Participation

Purpose Public-private partnerships (PPPs) offer governments an opportunity to access private capital and skills to build or upgrade, operate and manage public water infrastructure services hitherto provided and run by the public sector. Access to private finance speeds up the provision of public water services in developing countries, where many governments face budgetary constraints. However, the water sector attracts the least investment flows in developing countries, well below other infrastructure sectors. This paper aims to present the results of an investigation of critical success factors (CSFs) required for attracting the private sector in water supply projects. Design/methodology/approach A structured questionnaire survey of international PPP expert opinions was conducted. Findings Analysis results show that the CSFs for attracting the private sector to water PPPs include political commitment from elected leaders toward PPPs for water supply; existence of a dedicated PPP unit; strong and competent public water authority; adequate fiscal capacity of a national/subnational authority; public acceptance and support of involvement of the private sector in water services; a well-designed PPP contract; existence of enabling policy and legal frameworks to support water PPPs; and profitability of water supply project(s) to attract investors and lenders. Agreement analysis also indicates a strong to very strong agreement on the significance and rankings of the CSFs. Originality/value The research findings provide an insight into a number of important issues to enable greater private participation in water supply projects, most of which aim at reminding governments of some key areas that need reform and enabling greater commitment among them to undertake such reforms. Given the limited empirical research on CSFs for attracting private participation, this research makes a contribution to the body of knowledge about private involvement in the water sector of developing countries.

scholarly journals Development of water supply services for the formation of eco-friendly city environment

2021 ◽  
Vol 937 (4) ◽  
pp. 042027
Author(s):  
A Mottaeva
Keyword(s):  
Water Supply ◽  
Water Reuse ◽  
City Planning ◽  
Municipal Services ◽  
Resource Saving ◽  
City Environment ◽  
City Population ◽  
The City ◽  
Water Supply Services

Abstract The study of possibilities of the improvement of services of water supply of the services on the basis of the principles of resource-saving is the objective of this research. The authors analyzed the general trends, features and problems of providing the population with drinking water in the cities. The authors consider it expedient to use the classification of the water, used in the fleet, but also to correct it for houses. Some actions for management of the decrease in volumes of water consumption by the population were offered on the basis of this classification. The possibility of implementation of systems of water reuse in the course of rendering services of water supply to the population were technically and are economically proved. The perspective directions of the development of services of water supply of the city population were proved economically. The results and offers which are contained in this article can be useful for the authorities when developing city-planning projects, for employees of housing-and-municipal services, services responsible for ecological wellbeing in the cities, and for other specialists.

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