Veolia speeds up the development of its water business in Japan by signing off the operation of Miyagi Water and WasteWater Concession Project

Led by Veolia and METAWATER Co., Ltd., a consortium with 8 other local partners signed off the Basic Agreement towards a concession contract to manage the operation, management, and renewal work of the water services in Japan’s Miyagi Prefecture. With this operation, Veolia pursues the global expansion of its water activity, with a step further in Japan, and adds a new flagship project to its existing portfolio.

The Miyagi concession is the first of its kind in Japan, as it includes drinking water production, industrial water production, and sewage treatment. It is the first-ever concession project in Japan that includes drinking water production, which was made possible by the amendment of the Water Law at the end of 2018.

This concession contract is for 20 years of O&M and renewal work of 8 treatment plants, with a total treatment capacity of over 900,000 m3 per day. Veolia will supply drinking water to municipalities totaling 1,92 million inhabitants.

Relying on new digital solutions, Veolia’s technical know-how and state-of-art innovation is one of the major winning factors. The Group will develop a comprehensive digital platform that integrates a large range of modules and digital tools to manage and store all data related to project management, operations, and renewal works. This platform will be key in supporting Miyagi Prefecture to tackle the challenge of the expected decrease in population and aging of water assets and to provide sustainable, resilient, and high-quality water services while keeping all stakeholders informed all the time.

The Miyagi concession marks a further stage in the development of Veolia’s water business in Japan, following the successful bid for the Hamamatsu concession in 2017, which was awarded to Veolia and was the first-ever concession for sewage management in Japan, with a long term 20-year O&M contract. These two projects are highly recognized and are strong references in the market. Winning these two contracts demonstrated Veolia’s recognized expertise, and opened up many opportunities for Veolia Japan. Going forward, Veolia is committed to accompany municipal water transition in Japan and broaden our offering for all clients in plant operations and metering activities.

Antoine Frérot, CEO of Veolia said: “We are extremely proud to have been selected, together with Metawater and our other local partners, for the management of the water services in Japan’s Miyagi Prefecture. Veolia is the only private foreign operator to have been awarded various water-related public service management contracts in Japan, which only recently opened up to public-private partnerships. Over the years, Veolia has become a partner of choice for Japanese public services and a market reference for outsourced management in Japan. We look forward to working with Metawater and our local partners to provide top-notch environmental solutions to local communities.”

Veolia employs 9,000 people across Japan, where it manages water and wastewater treatment, water tariffs collection and customer services, industrial services, biomass energy generation, and plastic recycling. As of 2020, Veolia manages 72 drinking water treatment plants and 64 wastewater treatment plants in Japan.

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