Brazilian sanitation firm Aegea Saneamento has won a 35-year concession contract to manage water supply and sewerage services across Piauí, following a bidding process led by the state government, reports BN Americas. The auction, held at São Paulo’s B3 stock exchange, saw Aegea as the sole bidder, with the company meeting the minimum offer requirement of 1 billion reais (approximately US$175 million).
This contract will expand Aegea’s operations to include 222 municipalities within Piauí, supplementing its existing services in the state capital, Teresina, where it has operated since 2017. The agreement entails management and maintenance of a 5,253 km water distribution network and a 601 km sewage network, with a total estimated investment of 8.6 billion reais over the contract term.
Under the terms of the concession, Aegea is tasked with reaching critical infrastructure milestones: by 2033, 99% of the population should have access to piped water, and by 2040, 90% are expected to have sewerage services. These targets are part of Brazil's recent regulatory push to expand water and sanitation access nationwide, established in 2021. States and municipalities that fail to achieve full service coverage by 2033 may lose access to federal funding. However, extensions are permitted in areas with lower coverage, such as Piauí, where the goal for universal service extends to 2040.
Aegea, primarily owned by the Equipav group (53%), Singapore’s GIC fund (34%), and Itaúsa (13%), currently operates in 507 cities across 15 states in Brazil, providing water and sanitation services to around 31 million people. This latest contract marks another significant step in the firm’s commitment to advancing water access across the country’s underserved regions.
