French-owned water supplier Apa Nova has increased the tariff on drinkable and sewage water in Bucharest by 36 percent. A cubic meter of drinkable water now costs around EUR 0.83, compared to EUR 0.60 before the price hike. For sewage water, the price grew from some EUR 0.13 to around EUR 0.18 a cubic meter. The increase in tariff will cover exclusively the running costs for the company's new water cleaning station in Bucharest.

The Bucharest City Hall has recently inaugurated a EUR 108 million sewage water cleaning station in Glina, near Bucharest. Apa Nova will run the station at a cost of EUR 27 million a year. The second stage of this station will be ready in 2015, but there will be no increase in tariff then. The investment costs for this projects were covered by the EU – 65 percent, Romania's Government – 2.7 percent, the European bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) – some 23 percent. The second stage of the project will need about EUR 350 million.

Veolia Apa has been operating in Romania since 2000 when it was awarded its first water and wastewater concessions in the country for the cities of Bucharest and Ploiesti, valid for 25 years. Apa Nova runs a water and sewage network of 5.200 km.

editor@romania-insider.com