Since 1 January 2026, De Watergroep's operations have been run by Waterunie Operator, a company it owns 50/50 with Farys. For suppliers to a utility that spent €162.165 million on mains in 2025, the operator, not just the asset owner, now matters.
A cleared joint venture
Waterunie Operator was incorporated on 6 October 2025 after the Belgian Competition Authority cleared it on 15 July 2025. The clearance came with 10-year behavioural commitments, an independent monitor and a ban on exchanging commercially sensitive information with industrial-water entities, including De Watergroep's subsidiary Azulatis. The operator manages the infrastructure in the partners' name and for their account; De Watergroep keeps its customer relations, and owns the infrastructure until an asset merger planned for 2032.
How buying works today
De Watergroep tenders as a utilities contracting entity under Directive 2014/25/EU. Its mains framework for distribution zones 5 and 6 was awarded on 20 October 2022 to two joint ventures after a negotiated procedure with a prior call for competition. Its digital meters have been tendered through a joint framework led by Pidpa, estimated at €198,619,000.
Joint projects already under way
The partnership extends to supply planning. In 2025 an investment decision was taken on an interconnection from Kluizen to Merendree on the Farys transmission network, at the centre of a joint supply strategy for West and East Flanders; 1 km of the 13 km link was laid in 2025 and the environmental permit for the rest of the route is being prepared with Farys.
Stronger results behind it
De Watergroep returned to a profit of €24.1 million in 2025 on turnover of €974.0 million, and its net debt to EBITDA ratio fell to 5.9 against a limit of 9.
Which programmes are open or emerging, who holds major work and where suppliers should focus first are set out in the full report. The full report, De Watergroep: Utility Account Brief, is available for USD 499. For a free overview, read the De Watergroep Utility Snapshot.