On Wednesday 29 July, the Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux Group signed the contract for the wastewater treatment plant in Maribor, Slovenia's second city (population 150,000).

This is a B.O.T. (build, operate and transfer) contract to run a 190,000 population equivalent wastewater treatment plant for 25 years. The plant's treatment performance complies with the most demanding standards current in the European Union.

The contract represents an investment of about 210 million French francs and an annual turnover of around 50 million francs. The project will benefit from a loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Apart from Lyonnaise des Eaux and its subsidiary Degrémont, the consortium includes the Austrian companies Steweag (Styrie electricity) and Styrcon (engineering consultant).

The contract was won against stiff international competition and is the first concession contract won by Lyonnaise des Eaux in Slovenia as well as the first B.O.T. contract for wastewater treatment in Central and Eastern Europe.