At the initiative of the Argentine government and following an international invitation to tender, Aguas Argentinas came into being on 1st May 1993 to take up two challenges:
In 1993, Aguas Argentinas was awarded the contract for water and wastewater services for the city of Buenos Aires. The contract was unilaterally terminated in 2006 by the Government of Argentina against the backdrop of the country’s financial crisis in 2002 and the depreciation of the Argentinean peso against the dollar.
Since then, the ICSID, the World Bank’s independent arbitration body, has confirmed, on July 30, 2010, the Republic of Argentina’s liability in the litigation concerning the termination of the water and wastewater concession contracts for the city of Buenos Aires and State of Santa Fe, which had pitted GDF SUEZ, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT and AGBAR against Argentina.
ICSID’s decision is an important recognition of the work accomplished on the ground by the employees of Aquas Argentinas, which, in 13 years (1993-2006), enabled, among other things, 2 million Argentineans who previously had no access to running water to be connected to the public drinking water service, and 1 million people previously without facilities to be connected to wastewater services.
The involvement of Aguas Argentinas
In 13 years of activity, despite countless difficulties due to the economic situation, Aguas Argentinas signed up 2 million inhabitants to its potable water services and 1 million inhabitants to its sanitation services. A special programme was carried out to enable the poorest districts to obtain access to potable water services, thanks to a participatory management model. This model has since been carried over and successfully extended to other emerging countries.
Aguas Argentinas has been tirelessly involved in numerous social and educational projects. In the midst of the sequels of the 2001 crisis, Aguas Argentinas always endeavoured to ensure the quality of its services, protect employment and encourage expansion of the network in the disadvantaged districts.
The process of transformation of the water and sanitation services of the Buenos Aires urban area carried out by Aguas Argentinas was the result of the professionalism and enthusiasm of its personnel, and the support of its shareholders and SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT, GDF SUEZ and Agbar, as operator.
The coming years will undoubtedly make it possible to place in perspective and evaluate the real contribution of Aguas Argentinas to reconstruction of the Argentine sanitation infrastructure.
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Download the PR announcing the CIRDI decision
