Charleston Water System

What Charleston Water System does

Charleston Water System is a public water and wastewater utility, formally the Commissioners of Public Works of the City of Charleston, SC, operating continuously since 1917 and governed by an elected Board of Commissioners. It provides potable water to approximately 450,000 people (120,000 retail accounts) and wastewater collection and treatment to 180,000 people (65,000 retail accounts) across Charleston, North Charleston, Hanahan, James Island, Daniel Island, West Ashley, and adjacent communities. Core infrastructure includes 1,800 miles of water mains, 800 miles of sewer mains (comprising 540 miles of gravity sewer, 115 miles of force main, 138 miles of service laterals, and 12 miles of deep tunnels), 209+ pump stations, 9,800 fire hydrants, the 115.4 MGD Hanahan Water Treatment Plant, and the 36 MGD Plum Island Wastewater Treatment Plant, all monitored via SCADA systems and supported by Neptune Automated Meter Reading technology.

The utility's operations are funded entirely by rates and fees for service, interest-bearing investments, and revenue bond proceeds — it does not receive tax revenue and has earned AAA (S&P, 2010) and Aaa (Moody's, 2015) bond ratings. Revenue streams consist of recurring monthly water and sewer charges based on consumption, one-time impact fees and tap fees for new connections (restricted to growth-related capital improvements), and transactional service/administrative fees. Distribution is direct via owned infrastructure supplemented by wholesale water supply agreements with eight regional municipal utilities and Joint Base Charleston, and a New Development department manages engineering, permitting, and project closeout for new construction.

Charleston Water System was the first combined water and wastewater utility in the U.S. to earn ISO 14001 environmental management certification (1999), is a member of the EPA/AWWA Partnership for Safe Water, and holds the highest possible ratings on joint SC DES and EPA wastewater compliance inspections. Currently executing a $250 million wastewater master plan to address growth, sea level rise, and extreme weather, the utility invested hundreds of millions in West Ashley sewer upgrades since 1995 and serves approximately 470 staff across administrative, customer service, treatment, distribution, and capital project functions.

Name

Charleston Water System

Legal name

Commissioners of Public Works of the City of Charleston, SC

Website

https://charlestonwater.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1917

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Charleston Water System is a public water and wastewater utility serving approximately 450,000 people across the Greater Charleston area with potable water, sewer collection, and treatment, funded by usage-based rates, tap/impact fees, and AAA-rated revenue bonds.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water and Wastewater Utilities

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131), Sewage Treatment Facilities (22132), Utilities (22)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Sanitary Services (4950)

akta.pro primary industry

Water Supply & Wastewater Utilities Administration (BPAIACAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Treatment & Wet-Weather Capacity (EUANADAF), Domestic Hot & Cold Water System Hygiene (Potable Water) (BPABAJAD), Water Resources Administration (Watersheds, Rivers, Groundwater) (BPAIAMAE)

Keywords

• Water utility services
• Wastewater treatment
• Potable water distribution
• Sewer collection systems
• Public water infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

Charleston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Water Service Revenue: Charges for potable water delivery to retail and wholesale customers through 1,800 miles of water mains
2. Sewer Service Revenue: Charges for wastewater collection and treatment services through 800 miles of collection mains
3. Impact Fees: Fees charged for new connections to water and sewer systems, used exclusively for capital improvements related to growth
4. Tap Fees: One-time fees for new service connections
5. Service and Administrative Fees: Various fees including application fees, inspection fees, re-inspection fees, and document fees

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Charleston Water System is a public water and wastewater utility providing potable water treatment and distribution to approximately 450,000 people through 1,800 miles of water mains from the Hanahan Water Treatment Plant (115.4 MGD capacity). It also provides wastewater collection and treatment through 800 miles of sewer mains and the Plum Island Wastewater Treatment Plant (36 MGD capacity), serving 180,000 people. Operations are funded by monthly rates and fees; the utility does not receive tax revenue.

Product overview

Charleston Water System operates as a public water and wastewater utility providing core water treatment and distribution services alongside sewer collection and treatment. The utility's main offerings include potable water service (Hanahan Water Treatment Plant, 115.4 MGD capacity) and wastewater service (Plum Island Wastewater Treatment Plant, 36 MGD capacity), supplemented by new development engineering services, backflow prevention programs, and customer-facing programs such as Citizens Academy and community event water provision. The company also offers optional service protection through HomeServe partnership.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Water Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Eliminated 5 million gallons per day of infiltration and inflow through I/I reduction program
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SC 811coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCharleston Water System is a Preferred Partner with SC 811, the state's one-call notification system for safe digging practices. This partnership promotes public safety by encouraging contractors and homeowners to call before digging to prevent damage to underground utilities.
• Water MissionminorOthersWater Mission is a Christian engineering nonprofit that provides safe water solutions. Through the Operation Round-Up program, customers can donate round-up amounts to Water Mission, which has provided access to safe water for more than 8 million people in 60 countries.
• Palmetto Community Action PartnershipminorOthersThe Good Neighbor Program administered by Palmetto Community Action Partnership helps local families experiencing financial hardship pay their water bills. Ninety percent of donated funds are used to help customers in need.
• Charleston Regional Resource Recovery AuthoritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRRRA is a joint venture between Charleston Water System, Mount Pleasant Waterworks, and North Charleston Sewer District for regional resource recovery. Board meetings are held with representatives from all three utilities.

Scale indicators16 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• American Water Works Company: American Water is the largest publicly traded U.S. water and wastewater utility, operating across 14 states. It serves as a broad incumbent reference point for utility-scale water operations, even though it operates as an investor-owned company rather than a public entity.
• Aqua America (Essential Utilities): Essential Utilities operates regulated water, wastewater, and natural gas utilities across multiple states, providing an investor-owned benchmark for asset valuation and operational scale relevant to CWS's rate-base analysis.
• Veolia North America: Veolia operates and contracts for municipal water and wastewater systems across the U.S., including O&M partnerships; comparable to CWS in technical capability though structured as a private operator rather than an asset-owning utility.

Regional players

• San Diego County Water Authority: SDCWA is a regional wholesale water supplier serving Southern California. While it does not own retail wastewater operations, its wholesale-only model mirrors CWS's bulk-water business to neighboring utilities like Mt. Pleasant Waterworks.

Direct peers

• DC Water: DC Water is a combined water and wastewater utility serving the District of Columbia and surrounding jurisdictions with similar mixed retail/wholesale model and deep-tunnel infrastructure (e.g., Clean Rivers project), making it a closely comparable mid-large municipal combined utility.
• Philadelphia Water Department: Philadelphia Water Department is one of the largest combined water and wastewater utilities in the U.S., operating an aging infrastructure network comparable to CWS's 1,800-mile water/800-mile sewer footprint.
• JEA (Jacksonville Electric Authority / JEA Water): JEA provides water, wastewater, and electric services to Jacksonville, FL — a coastal Southeast utility of similar scale with comparable climate, regulatory, and growth dynamics to Charleston Water System.
• Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago: MWRD is a large combined water/wastewater agency in the Midwest operating deep-tunnel (TARP) infrastructure analogous to CWS's 12-mile deep tunnel system, with similar wet-weather capacity and stormwater management mandates.
• Louisville Water Company: Louisville Water Company is a municipally owned combined water and wastewater utility serving the Louisville metro with a similar century-old heritage (founded 1860) and similar scale of retail/wholesale operations.

Others

• Charleston Regional Resource Recovery Authority: CRRRA is a joint venture between CWS, Mount Pleasant Waterworks, and North Charleston Sewer District for regional biosolids/resource recovery. It is included as an ecosystem partner rather than a competitor, illustrating CWS's regional integration strategy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ChasWaterSystem
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/CharlestonWater/feed
• Facebookfacebook.com/charlestonwater
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/charleston-water-system
• Instagraminstagram.com/charlestonwatersystem

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 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 Charleston Water System