Tehran Water and Wastewater Company is considering strategies to attract finances for its projects from investors, including Chinese, the company’s managing director said.
“Attracting private sector participation and foreign direct investment is among the prioritized policies,” Asghar Riazati was quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.
Riazati said the company has received investment worth $223 million (€200 million) from China, which will be used for the construction of two water treatment facilities in southern Tehran to support an extension of a 350-km-long pipeline.
The facilities will meet the water demand of 1.2 million local residents.
“Local investments have provided funding for the construction of another 500 kilometers of pipeline,” he said, pinpointing guaranteed profit and capital return as one of the most important factors in involving the private sector in any business venture.
Currently, a water treatment plant in Tehran is funded by $29.5 million (one trillion rials) worth of private sector investment. Nearly 3,000 water and wastewater projects nationwide are incomplete due to lack of funds.
Add to that the development of 250 wastewater projects in urban areas that requires more than $6.3 billion, according to the National Water and Wastewater Engineering Company.
According to Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian, more than 1,000 projects, including those pertaining to water supply, wastewater network expansion and electricity distribution, went on stream last month.
