The State of Berlin gave up €57.8 million of its profit from Berliner Wasserbetriebe in each of 2024 and 2025, and €82.6 million for 2026, so that the utility's charges would not rise. Together that is €198.2 million in three years. The utility's planning assumes no such waiver for 2027.
Eleven years without a rise
Berliner Wasserbetriebe charges €1.694 per cubic meter for drinking water and €2.155 per cubic meter for wastewater in 2026. In September 2025 the Senate said water prices had not risen for eleven years. The utility now expects a "moderate" increase from 2027. Its FY 2025 plan pencils in €0.016 per cubic meter more for drinking water and €0.093 more for wastewater, about 0.9% and 4.3% on current charges. These are planning assumptions, not decisions.
Rising investment, a loss year
The utility reported a net result of minus €149.8 million for 2025, after a €309.3 million goodwill write-off. Total investment reached €589.0 million in 2025 and is planned at €691.3 million for 2027, while planned EBIT falls from €324.3 million in 2026 to €201.2 million in 2027.
Who decides
The supervisory board, chaired by Economy Senator Franziska Giffey, sets the charges. Amended charging rules are due to take effect by January 1, 2027 at the latest. The decision lands in a political transition: Die Linke came first in the September 20, 2026 election with 25.66% of second votes, and as of October 22 its coalition with the Greens and the SPD was still being formed. No 2027 charge had been published by late October.
The report explains how the state's return on capital, its profit distributions and the coming charge rules fit together, what the utility must finance through 2027, and which treatment and waterworks programs depend on it. The full report, Water Systems Overview: Berliner Wasserbetriebe, is available for USD 499 at https://ourfuturewaterintelligence.com/reports/water-systems-overview-berliner-wasserbetriebe. For a free overview, read the Berliner Wasserbetriebe Utility Snapshot at https://ourfuturewaterintelligence.com/utilities/berliner-wasserbetriebe.