Veolia Water takes majority stake in Sofiyska Voda
Veolia Water has inked an agreement which will see them acquire a number of United Utilities' activities in Europe, including the Bulgarian Sofiyska Voda, a company media statement said on June 14 2010.The company will acquire a controlling 58 per cent stake in Sofiyska Voda, which runs water supply and treatment services for the capital, serving 1.3 million inhabitants. United Utilities has offloaded more of its non-regulated interests after agreeing a deal worth 174.2 million pounds sterling with Veolia Water UK.Moreover, Veolia Water will emerge as the leading industrial shareholder, with a 26 per cent stake in AS Tallinna Vesi, a company that provides water supply and treatment services for Tallinn, Estonia, serving more than 400 000 people. It will also take a 33 per cent stake in Aqua SA, the company operating water supply and treatment services for the city of Bielsko Biala and its environs in southern Poland, serving more than 300 000 people.Last summer, it emerged that UK water company United Utilities is reviewing key assets that could lead to the sale of assets worth more than 800 million pounds sterling, which also included the operations in Sofia.The UK's largest listed company said it planned to offload assets that are not regulated by local authorities and terminate a meter installation contract with British Gas Trading, a water facilities upgrading contract in Townsville, Australia, and discontinue operations in Bulgaria, Estonia, Poland, and the Philippines.The French firm Veolia Water said it will become the "leading player" in the non-regulated water sector in the UK as a result of the takeover.