Florida
Local company Utilities, Inc. of Florida National parent company Utilities, Inc.
610.337.1000 (Valley Forge, PA) jswope@ugi.com www.ugicorp.com/Multinational parent company American International Group (AIG) Contract status: May 2005 Utilities Inc. no longer privately owned but publicly traded corporation acquisitioned by AIG (for more information go to www.citizen.org/cmep/water/general/majorwater/aig)
Tampa, Florida
Local company N/A National parent company United Water Resources
www.unitedwater.comMultinational parent company Suez
Tampa (St. Petersburg and New Port Richey), Florida
Local company Tampa Bay Water Surface Water Treatment System National parent company Veolia Water North America
800.522.4774 (Houston, Texas); general.information@veoliawaterna.com; www.veoliawaterna.comMultinational parent company Veolia Environnement Contract type: 15 year agreement; design, construct and operate
Date of privatization: 2000
Number of people served: 1500000
...risk that Veolia Environnement may incur environmental liability in connection with its past, present and future operations, and the risks related to Veolia Environnement's relationship with Vivendi Universal...
April, 2007
The Veolia Water North America - South LLC (Veolia Water) project will nearly double capacity at the Tampa Bay Water Regional Surface Water Treatment Plant from 72 million-gallons-per-day (MGD) to 120 MGD. Veolia Water designed, built and now operates what will be the regional water authority's largest treatment facility and among the world's most technologically sophisticated, having led a team of companies first selected in 2000. The contract amendment amounting to $158.4 million over its term was unanimously approved by Tampa Bay Water's board of directors, making the Brandon, Fla., treatment facility the nation's largest DBO project, sharing the honor with Seattle Public Utilities' 120-MGD Tolt Treatment Facility. The project also reunites Veolia Water with Camp Dresser & McKee, the project's design engineer of record. Tampa Bay Water provides wholesale water to the public utility systems of Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties as well as the cities of New Port Richey, St. Petersburg and Tampa. Veolia Water North America - South, LLC, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Veolia Water North America, providing services to more than 14 million people in approximately 600 communities. The company is part of Veolia Water, the No. 1 water company in the world, serving more than 108 million customers. Veolia Water is the water division of Veolia Environnement
After evaluating several proposals, the water authority selected the Veolia Water North America (formerly USFilter Operating Services, Inc.) team of Tampa-based general contractor The Clark Construction Group, engineer Camp Dresser & McKee, Inc. (CDM) of Sarasota, Fla., and, of course, the water treatment system and service provider and project leader Veolia. The $144 million, 15-year agreement with an optional 5-year renewal is one of the largest water treatment DBO contracts in the United States.Tampa Bay Water is Florida's largest public wholesale water supplier, drawing approximately 632,000 cubic meters/day of water from numerous surface water sources and serving 1.5 million customers.... the authority developed a $609 million Master Water Plan to address new water sources. The first phase ....concentrates on surface water. Looking ...the authority entered into a 15-year design-build-operate (DBO) agreement with a team led by Veolia Water for a 250,000 cubic meters/day regional surface water treatment plant. As part of the March 2000 agreement, Veolia Water carried out the design and construction of the plant and today provides for its day-to-day operation.The public-private partnership is the second-largest water production DBO contract in the United States.
Tampa Bay Water has selected Veolia Water, through its American subsidiary, Veolia Water North America – South LLC, for the project extension (design, build, operate) of its regional surface water treatment plant, Brandon, in Florida, which will nearly double its capacity, from 72 million-gallons-per-day (MGD) to 120 MGD. Planned completion and acceptance of the facility is scheduled for the end of 2010 at the latest, the date when plant operation will commence for a period of 13 years. The contract is worth US$158,4million" We are delighted that Tampa Bay Water has renewed its confidence in the company by awarding us with the capacity extension of this big plant. "The Brandon treatment plant blends a mixture of water from the Alafia River, the Tampa Bypass Canal, the Hillsborough River and the C.W. Bill Young Regional Reservoir through a 72-inch diameter pipeline to the plant. Upgrades to the plant are expected to be finished in 2010, with the current contract with Veolia in place through 2023. It will directly serve Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties as well as the cities of New Port Richey, St. Petersburg and Tampa.
Veolia is the top supplier of water in the world with more than 108 million customers. It is a division of Veolia Environnement (NYSE: VE) with revenues of $38.7 billion in 2006.
Tampa Bay Water selected Veolia Water of North America as the private partner. The partnership arrangement commits Tampa Bay Water to expand surface water capacity by 120 million gallons a day (MGD). The project involves two design-build phases. The first phase involves developing 97 MGD between 1998 and 2007 at a cost of $85 million. This has already been accomplished. The second phase involves developing an additional 25 MGD between 2006 and 2011 at a cost of $80 million.
- Great Britain's environmental agency rated Great Britain's environmental agency rated Vivendi Vivendi one of top 5 one of top 5 polluters.
- Argentina faulted Vivendi for poor performance and poor water Argentina faulted Vivendi for poor performance and poor water quality in quality in Tucuman Tucuman. . Vivendi Vivendi took Argentina to international dispute took Argentina to international dispute center under bilateral agreement with France claiming Argentina center under bilateral agreement with France claiming Argentina had had not fulfilled its obligations. not fulfilled its obligations.
- In New Orleans, US Filter subsidiary PSG had contract with city. In New Orleans, US Filter subsidiary PSG had contract with city. In In July 2001 PSG diverted raw sewage into Mississippi River for two July 2001 PSG diverted raw sewage into Mississippi River for two hours after electrical fire.
- Suez/ United Water, Vivendi/ US Filter, RWE/Thames (the German/ Suez/ United Water, Vivendi/ US Filter, RWE/Thames (the German/British conglomerate) were major contenders to take over Ne British conglomerate) were major contenders to take over New w Orleans water system.
Veolia Environnement operates hundreds of private sector water projects in almost 50 countries around the world, reaching an estimated 110 million people. Until 2002, Veolia, formerly known as Vivendi Environnement, was a wholly-owned subsidiary of Vivendi Universal... But whatever distance the water company manages to put between itself and Vivendi in the eyes of the financial community, the company can't distance itself from its record—a record reflecting a corporation that views water not as a right or a necessity of life, but as an opportunity for monopoly profits. While Veolia's focus remains developed urban markets in Europe, the US, and Asia, the corporation is hedging its bets with increasingly substantive roles in service delivery in the developing world, often in collusion with the World Bank.Social organizations define water as a public good that should be managed by national governments, but international finance organizations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) say that only private sector investment — to the tune of US$50 billion a year — can guarantee universal water access in Latin America.In the 1990s... many Latin American and Caribbean countries passed their water sources, drinking water services and bottled water supply over to private multinational water companies, such as French companies Vivendi and Suez and their many subsidiaries, as well as large food and beverage corporations such as Nestlé, Danone, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo.
In all cases, a common scheme was followed. It began with the self-destruction of the state-run water companies in order to justify low-cost privatizations.
Later came an increase in water service fees, the breach of concession contract because of a lack of investment, ending with the reselling of the companies, indebted and obsolete, back to the governments that granted the concessions.
After the Compañía de Aguas, a subsidiary of Vivendi, ran the Aqueducts and Sewer System Authority of Puerto Rico from 1995 to 2001, it left a legacy of operational and maintenance failures in the drinking water and sewage treatment plants.
The company's successor, another French company, Ondeo, a Suez subsidiary, did no better, and in 2004 the government cancelled the contract and transferred the company to public hands.Nestlé and French company Danone already dominate the bottled water business in Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay.There are a handful of major international private water companies, but two French multinational corporations dominate the sector: Vivendi SA (soon to be called Veolia Environnement) and Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux (soon to be called Ondeo). These two companies own or have interests in water projects in more than 120 countries and each by their own claims provide water to around 100 million people.
Despite Vivendi's dominant position in water privatization, water activities are a small part of the larger company, Vivendi Universal, which was created in December 2000 when it merged with the Seagram Company to form a global media and telecommunications company. The total annual revenue from the interlocking subsidiaries of Vivendi in 2000 exceeded $37 billion, of which more than 25 percent came from the water business.4
Vivendi's water division - Vivendi Water - was formed from Vivendi Water Systems, Compagnie Generale des Eaux and US Filter .
BRIBERY -
... in July 2001, Alain Maetz, a senior manager in Vivendi's water division, was convicted for bribery and received a prison sentence of one year and eight months with conditional discharge. Judges said that Mr. Maetz had paid a bribe of ITL 25m (about £8,000) to Mr. De Carolis, the president of Milan city council, who expected to receive up to ITL 200m (over £64,000) to favour OTV, a subsidiary of Vivendi) in the bidding procedure for the contract for a wastewater treatment plant in the south of Milan.
In July 1997, a junior French minister Jean-Michel Boucheron was jailed for two years, with a further two suspended, and fined one million francs (£94,800) for taking bribes from companies bidding in public tenders. Boucheron reportedly had received fees of 327,000 francs (£31,000) for a fictitious job by Compagnie Generale des Eaux (Vivendi) in exchange for giving the utility a water distribution contract in Angouleme.
Hingham and Hull, Massachusetts
Massachusetts-American, an American Water Works subsidiary, more than doubled water rates over a five-year period, claiming the increase was needed to build a new water treatment facility. There is evidence, however, that the company inflated the costs of the new facility to increase its profits.(2)
Huber Heights, Ohio
In 1993, American Water Works purchased Ohio Suburban Water, a small outfit that provided water for 40,000 customers in Huber Heights and parts of the Mad River Township. The city opposed the sale, concerned that the company would raise rates and extend service to areas beyond the city limits without annexation, thus impairing the city's ability to grow. The city's fears soon materialized – the company increased its rates by 30 percent. At the same time the company moved to contract with Industrial Water to deliver up to 2 million gallons of Huber Heights' water a day to the Wiley Industrial Park, located outside the city.(2)
Pekin, Illinois
In 1982, Illinois-American, another subsidiary of American Water Works, acquired Pekin's water system from a local private owner. In the 18 years that followed, rates increased by 204 percent. At the same time, the company failed to keep infrastructure up-to-date. The company's behavior negatively impacted the city's economic growth and added to its expenses.(2)
One of the main arguments for privatization of water systems is that it will save municipalities millions of dollars. For example, the Mayor of Stockton, California, a proponent of privatization, claims that the city's 20-year, $600-million deal with OMI-Thames Water, which went into effect on August 1, 2003, will save the city as much as $97 million compared to continued public utility operation. Several studies suggest that this may not be true. A study by the Pacific Institute finds that Stockton stands to lose $1.7 million over the life of the deal.
Veolia Water has won a contract for the design, construction, operation and maintenance of a seawater desalination plant using reverse osmosis. The plant will be located at Campo de Dalías in the province of Almeria in southern Spain.The Campo de Dalías project is part of the national desalination plant program launched by the Spanish Ministry for the Environment through Acuamed, the public water agency responsible for the development of the plan.
Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies will be in charge of the process components, and Spanish companies Sando, Inypsa and Montajes Electricos Crescencio Perez will be responsible for the construction, civil engineering and management components. On completion, Veolia Water will operate the plant.
Veolia Water already has three major references: Ashkelon in Israel, (320,000 cubic meters/day), the world's biggest reverse osmosis desalination plant, which has been in operation since September 2005; Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia (delivery end-2008, 125,000 cubic meters/day), and Sur in Oman (delivery early 2009, 80,000 cubic meters/day). This new success confirms the company's position as world leader in seawater desalination.
The company has been built up on the rationale that there were significant synergies between supplying water equipment and operating water services.The equipment business benefited from a captive customer, while the operating services business benefited from in-house technologies
By the end of 2010, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District and Veolia Environmental Services plan to open a 17-mile, $80 million methane pipeline from Muskego to the Jones Island Water Reclamation facility... Veolia is the private contracting firm that operates the MMSD Jones Island water treatment plant.http://www.polarisinstitute.org/files/rwe%20september%202005.pdf (search for veolia, starts around page 12)RWE acquired Thames Water and American Water ... Thames Water (now officially known as RWE Thames Water), based in the UK, has regularly topped that country's list of the worst polluters and annually forks out undreds of thousands of Pounds in fines to the British Environment Agency.
In Australia, for example, where the company is part of a consortium made up of Veolia Environment and Halliburton's Kellogg Brown and Root, Thames Water is involved with the problem (and odor) plagued privatization experiment in Adelaide. Thames has also come under pressure in Indonesia over poor water quality and raised rates.
RWE Thames Water may be looking to expand in these areas if it can limit its financial risk. If recent contracts for the construction of desalination plants in the US (Florida) and the UK are any indication, the company's technical expertise is expanding into new arenas.
RWE Thames has entered into a number of joint ventures with the world's two water giants, Suez and Veolia/Vivendi.
In 1995, Adelaide privatized its water services when it awarded United Water, a consortium of Vivendi (now Veolia Environment), Thames Water and Halliburton's Brouwn and Root, a $1.5 billion contract. United Water failed to deliver on many of the promises that were at the centre of its contract bid. While water prices quickly went up and jobs were cut by 33 percent, United Water began making excellent returns off of the project. Since the project began, United Water's profits have increased every year. In 1997, just over a year after winning the contract, the city was overwhelmed by a strong sewage smell. The odor remained for over three months and was eventually tracked to Adelaide's largest wastewater treatment plant. Equipment failures and a lack of monitoring allowed raw sewage to run directly into settling lagoons for six days while a gate was being repaired. The State Government eventually paid $72 million to upgrade the plant.
