Water supply and sanitation in Spain

Spain: Water and Sanitation
Data
Water coverage (broad definition)	100%
Sanitation coverage (broad definition)	100%
Continuity of supply (%)	n/a
Average urban water use (liter/capita/day)	157 (2007) [1]
Average urban domestic water and sewer bill	Euro 227/year [2]
Share of household metering	n/a
Non-revenue water	24% (2007) [1]
Share of collected wastewater treated	77% (2005)
Annual investment in WSS	n/a
Share of self-financing by utilities	n/a
Share of tax-financing	n/a
Share of external financing	0%
Institutions
Decentralization to municipalities	Full
National water and sanitation company	None
Water and sanitation regulator	None
Responsibility for policy setting	Not clearly defined
Sector law	None
Number of service providers	n/a

Water supply and sanitation in Spain is characterized by universal access and good service quality, while tariffs are among the lowest in the EU. Almost half of the population is served by private or mixed private-public water companies, which operate under concession contracts with municipalities. The largest of the private water companies, with a market share of about 50% of the private concessions, is Aguas de Barcelona (Agbar). However, the large cities are all served by public companies except Barcelona and Valencia. The largest public company is Canal de Isabel II, which serves the metropolitan area of Madrid.

Droughts occasionally affect water supply in Southern Spain, resulting in their consideration of seawater desalination in order to meet water needs.