A consortium of firms from Argentina, Brazil, and the Netherlands has secured 90% ownership of the public water and sanitation utility company Agua y Saneamientos Argentinos, as announced by the government on Thursday. The bid in the tender amounted to US$340 million. The news indicates that the company, which supplies running water service to the 14 million residents of the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area, will revert to private ownership following two decades of state management. In 2006, the administration of Néstor Kirchner annulled the agreement with the French consortium Suez, which had been managing the operation since the privatisation in 1993, known as Aguas Argentinas. The existing concession contract has a duration of 30 years, with the possibility of extension for an additional ten years. The schedule indicates that the signing is expected to occur before the year’s end, with the new operator set to assume full control of the operation between January and February 2027.
Although the bid exceeded the other finalist’s offer by nearly 20%, the figure is significantly lower than the projected US$500 million from the economy ministry. The operation, however, stands as one of the largest privatisations executed by the Milei administration and the most profitable thus far for the libertarian government. While the most sizable privatisation to date was the sale of 70% of petrol provider Metrogas to power company Edenor (US$780 million), those funds are attributed to oil company YPF, which holds the majority stake in Metrogas. In the instance of AySA, the government acquires the complete proceeds from the transaction. In a tweet announcing the results, the economy ministry described AySA as a “model of administrative dysfunction,” asserting that the company received treasury transfers exceeding US$13.4 billion from 2006 to 2023. Despite this funding, the ministry noted that one-third of the concession area continues to lack access to drinking water and sewage services.
The consortium awarded the contract is spearheaded by Rowing SA, an Argentine engineering firm boasting over thirty years of expertise in infrastructure initiatives within Argentina. Another enterprise engaged in this sector is Transclor SA. Since 2009, it has served as the exclusive provider of aluminium polychloride utilised by AySA for water purification. Brazilian firm Arcos Saneamento e Participações, a subsidiary of the Equipav Group, is set to oversee technical operations. The firm has been providing water and sewage services since 2010, catering to over 39 million individuals across 15 Brazilian states. Dutch firm PHX Aqua AR B.V., located in the Netherlands, is also a member of the group. Alongside the price, the successful bidders are required to allocate US$1.9 billion within the initial five years and a total of US$15 billion throughout the 30-year concession period, concluding in 2056.
The objectives for the initial decade project an increase in water coverage from the present 75% to 79%, alongside a rise in sewage coverage from 64% to 65%. The ERAS water and sanitation regulatory agency has announced a public hearing scheduled for October 26, aimed at revising the utility prices of AySA. According to a UBA observatory on utility bill prices, the average water bill without subsidies in the Buenos Aires metropolitan area was approximately AR$43,000 in August 2026. Recent AySA projections indicate that 60% of residential users are expected to experience an average increase of 22%, while an additional 20% are projected to maintain their current billing levels. The remaining 20% would experience an average reduction of 15%.
