What Cedae does

Cedae (Companhia Estadual de Águas e Esgotos do Rio de Janeiro) is a state-owned mixed-economy water utility founded in the mid-1970s, headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and publicly listed on B3 under ticker CEDAE4 with the Estado do Rio de Janeiro as the controlling shareholder (99.9996%). The company operates the largest water treatment infrastructure in Rio de Janeiro state, running ten production systems (Guandu, Imunana-Laranjal, Ribeirão das Lajes, Acari, plus Mantiquira, São Pedro, Rio D'Ouro, Tinguá, Campos Elíseos, and Japeri) that collectively produce more than 57,000 liters of water per second and serve approximately 12 million people across 27 full-service municipalities (with partial service in 5 additional). Following the 2021 BNDES-led concession auctions that transferred downstream distribution and sewage services in 48 cities to private concessionaires (Águas do Rio, Iguá Saneamento, Rio+ Saneamento, Águas de Niterói), Cedae repositioned itself as the upstream bulk-water producer for the metropolitan region while continuing to provide direct full sanitation services to 15 interior municipalities.

The core technology stack centers on large-scale water treatment stations (ETAs), including conventional treatment alongside newer ultrafiltração (ultrafiltration at ETA Rio D'Ouro and ETA Xerém) and microfiltragem (microfiltration at ETA São Pedro and ETA Tinguá) deployments — the first such installations in Rio de Janeiro state. Water quality is overseen by three LIBRA laboratories (Guandu, Laranjal, Tijuca) accredited under ABNT NBR ISO/IEC 17025:2017 by INMETRO and credentialed by INEA. In June 2026, the company inaugurated the Centro de Monitoramento Ambiental (CMA) in Botafogo, a 24-hour integrated environmental monitoring center using 36 cameras at 14 watershed points, drones, floating physicochemical sensors, and NASA-equivalent spectral cameras to monitor the Guandu and Imunana-Laranjal basins in real time.

Cedae's business model is a regulated B2B/B2G bulk-water franchise. Primary revenue is generated through regulated long-term contracts to sell treated water upstream to private concessionaires, supplemented by direct subscription-style services in interior municipalities and regulated social tariffs (Tarifa Social) for low-income consumers. The CPAE web portal and Sinduscon-RJ partnership monetize water/sewage feasibility consultations for construction companies. The company operates a dedicated investor-relations platform (CEDAE4 on B3), achieved a record profit of R$ 1+ billion in 2024, and holds a Fitch AAA national-scale credit rating (confirmed May 2025). Beyond core operations, Cedae runs Replantando Vida, a 25-year socio-environmental reforestation and resocialization program that has planted 4.5 million native Atlantic Forest seedlings across 2,000 hectares and operates eight forest nurseries producing up to 2.3 million seedlings annually.

Name

Cedae

Legal name

Companhia Estadual de Águas e Esgotos - CEDAE

Website

https://cedae.com.br

Company type

Public

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Cedae is a state-owned water utility in Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, operating the largest water treatment infrastructure in the state (57,000+ liters/second across ten systems). Following 2021 concession auctions, it now produces and sells treated water wholesale to private concessionaires while providing direct sanitation services to interior municipalities, serving 12 million people.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Rio De Janeiro

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Water Sales to Concessionaries (Upstream): Cedae sells treated water to private concessionaries (Águas do Rio, Iguá Saneamento, Rio+ Saneamento, Águas de Niterói) that handle downstream distribution and sewage services in the metropolitan region. This is the primary revenue stream following the 2021 concession auctions.
2. Direct Water and Sewage Services (Interior Municipalities): In 14-15 interior municipalities that did not participate in the concession model, Cedae continues to provide full sanitation services directly, including water production, distribution, and sewage collection/treatment.
3. CPAE Services (Consulta de Possibilidade de Abastecimento e Esgotamento): Cedae provides water and sewage feasibility consultation services to construction companies and developers, issuing Declaration of Possibility of Supply (DPA) and Declaration of Possibility of Sewage (DPE) documents. Streamlined via partnership with Sinduscon-RJ.
4. Energy Efficiency Services: Revenue from energy efficiency projects including free energy market procurement and solar installations, generating cost savings that contribute to overall financial performance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Cedae (Companhia Estadual de Águas e Esgotos) operates large-scale water production and treatment systems in Rio de Janeiro state, producing over 57,000 liters of treated water per second across 10 systems serving approximately 12 million people. Following the 2021 concession auctions, the company sells treated water upstream to private concessionaries (Águas do Rio, Iguá Saneamento, Rio+ Saneamento, Águas de Niterói) and provides direct sanitation services to 14-15 interior municipalities.

Product overview

Cedae is a mixed-economy state water utility company undergoing historic restructuring following 2021 concession auctions. The company now focuses on upstream water production operations while private concessionaries handle distribution. The core product portfolio centers on four major water production systems: Guandu (producing 7,500 L/s initially with 53 million liter reservoir), Imunana-Laranjal (supplying 2+ million people), Ribeirão das Lajes, and Acari (serving Baixada Fluminense through five dams). Supporting these are four new water treatment stations under construction (ETA Rio D'Ouro, ETA Xerém, ETA São Pedro, ETA Tinguá) featuring advanced ultrafine and microfiltration technologies. Quality control is ensured through three LIBRA laboratories (Guandu, Laranjal, Tijuca) accredited to ISO/IEC 17025. The company also operates the Replantando Vida socio-environmental program for reforestation and resocialization, the Environmental Monitoring Center for watershed surveillance, and energy efficiency initiatives including solar installations. Customer-facing digital services include the Virtual Agency portal, CPAE web system for feasibility queries, and document digitization services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Guandu Water Production System Major water production system in Nova Iguaçu supplying water to the Greater Rio de Janeiro region, with production capacity of 7,500 liters per second and a reservoir storing 53 million liters.
• Imunana-Laranjal Water Production System Water production system serving São Gonçalo, Niterói, Itaboraí, part of Maricá, and Paquetá Island through rivers Macacu and Guapiaçu, supplying over 2 million people in Leste Fluminense.
• Ribeirão das Lajes Water Production System Water production system in the metropolitan region, one of ten systems operated by Cedae producing over 57,000 liters per second.
• Acari Water Production System Water production system serving parts of Duque de Caxias and Nova Iguaçu, comprising five dams (São Pedro, Rio D'Ouro, Tinguá, Xerém, and Mantiquira) supplying Baixada Fluminense.
• ETA Rio D'Ouro Water Treatment Station New Water Treatment Station under construction in Nova Iguaçu with ultrafine filtration technology, capable of producing 1,400 liters per second (up to 1,600 in peak demand), serving approximately 450,000 residents.
• ETA Xerém Water Treatment Station New water treatment station in Duque de Caxias featuring ultrafine filtration technology with flow of 1,300 liters per second (up to 1,600 in peak demand), serving approximately 450,000 residents.
• Replantando Vida Program Socio-environmental program combining reforestation with resocialization of people serving sentences, operating eight nurseries producing 2.3 million native Atlantic Forest seedlings annually, with 4.5 million seedlings planted over 25 years.
• Centro de Monitoramento Ambiental (CMA) 24-hour integrated environmental monitoring center covering watersheds of Guandu and Imunana-Laranjal systems, using 36 cameras at 14 points, climate maps, floating sensors, drones, and spectral cameras. Data is shared in real-time with operational control centers and government agencies.
• LIBRA Water Quality Laboratories Three accredited laboratories (Libra Guandu, Libra Laranjal, Libra Tijuca) monitoring water quality across Cedae's systems with sampling at over 35 control points, accredited to ABNT NBR ISO/IEC 17025:2017 by INMETRO and certified by INEA.
• Agência Virtual (Virtual Agency) Online customer service portal for bill payment, account history, meter reading consultation, service requests, and account management.
• CPAE Feasibility Consultation Service Web-based system for requesting Declaration of Water Supply Possibility (DPA) and Declaration of Sewage Disposal Possibility (DPE), with partnership with Sinduscon-RJ for expedited processing. Provides water and sewage feasibility consultations to construction companies and developers.
• Energy Efficiency Program Migration to free energy contracting market combined with solar photovoltaic panels installed at Acari System reservoirs (Tinguá and Xerém subsystems), projected to save R$ 214.4 million over five years.

Quantifiable outcome

• Produced over 57,000 liters of water per second across 10 systems serving 12 million people
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Sinduscon-RJ (Sindicato da Indústria da Construção Civil do Estado do Rio de Janeiro)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPioneering partnership between Cedae and Sinduscon-RJ to streamline access to water and sewage feasibility consultations (CPAE). The partnership introduced a new computerized routine enabling construction companies to request DPA (Declaration of Possibility of Supply) and DPE (Declaration of Possibility of Sewage) declarations online, reducing processing times and increasing transparency. Customers can track their request from submission to delivery.
• Arquivo Público do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (Aperj)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartnership for the digitization of Cedae's historical document archive. Aperj, an agency of the State Casa Civil responsible for preserving official documents of the State Executive branch, provided methodological guidance to ensure the digitization process met archival standards and legal compliance.
• AGENERSA (Agência Reguladora de Energia e Saneamento Básico do Estado do Rio de Janeiro)coreOthersAGENERSA is the state regulatory agency responsible for regulating and supervising energy and basic sanitation services in Rio de Janeiro state. Cedae operates under AGENERSA's regulatory oversight for tariff setting, service quality standards, and concession contract compliance.
• Instituto Sinal do ValeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEnvironmental organization partnering with Cedae for reforestation actions in the Recôncavo da Guanabara bioregion (covering Baixada Fluminense municipalities). Cedae donates 5,000 seedlings to the institute for reflorestation projects.
• Projeto PiabanhaStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation project partnering with Cedae for the planting of 2,500 seedlings near the Rio Paraíba do Sul. Projeto Piabanha works on aquatic biodiversity conservation in the region.
• Defesa Civil, Seas, Inea, Polícia Civil (Government Agencies)coreOthersEnvironmental monitoring data and images from Cedae's Centro de Monitoramento Ambiental (CMA) are shared in real-time with these government agencies for preventive actions, faster incident response, and greater protection of water resources in Rio de Janeiro state.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Sabesp: Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo — the São Paulo state water and sewage utility. Closest direct peer: same state-owned mixed-economy model, similar concession/regulatory structure, large metropolitan customer base, listed on B3 with active investor relations.
• Copasa: Companhia de Saneamento de Minas Gerais — Minas Gerais state water utility serving ~6 million connections. Comparable as a state-level mixed-economy water and sewage company listed on B3 with similar regulatory and tariff structure.
• Sanepar: Companhia de Saneamento do Paraná — Paraná state water and sewage utility. Direct peer as a publicly traded state water utility with a similar wholesale-plus-distribution model and strong ESG positioning in southern Brazil.
• Casan: Companhia Catarinense de Águas e Saneamento — Santa Catarina state water utility. Comparable as a state-level mixed-economy sanitation company with similar operating model and B3-listed shares.
• Embasa: Empresa Baiana de Águas e Saneamento — Bahia state water utility. Comparable state-owned sanitation operator serving a large population base in northeastern Brazil with similar regulatory and operational profile.
• Cagece: Companhia de Água e Esgoto do Ceará — Ceará state water and sewage utility. Direct peer as a state-level mixed-capital sanitation company serving the metropolitan region of Fortaleza.

Broad incumbents

• Águas do Rio: Private concessionary that acquired distribution rights in the 2021 BNDES auction covering blocks in metropolitan Rio de Janeiro. Cedae's largest wholesale customer and direct downstream counterparty in the value chain.
• Iguá Saneamento: Private sanitation concessionary active across multiple Brazilian states and serving as a Cedae concessionaire for Block 2 since February 2021. Comparable as a private-sector participant in Brazil's sanitation concession model.
• Aegea Saneamento: One of Brazil's largest private sanitation groups, holding concessions in multiple states. Comparable as a peer private operator benefiting from the same sanitation regulatory framework that shaped Cedae's 2021 restructuring.
• BRK Ambiental: Major private Brazilian water and sewage concessionary, part of Brookfield. Operates in numerous municipalities under concession contracts directly analogous to the model Cedae concessionaires use.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cedaerj
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCIwV2hjamYnwY3ijnnepVrA
• Facebookfacebook.com/cedaerj
• LinkedInbr.linkedin.com/company/cedae-companhia-estadual-de-aguas-e-esgotos
• Instagraminstagram.com/cedaerj
• TikToktiktok.com/@cedaerj

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cedae