Western Virginia Water Authority

What Western Virginia Water Authority does

The Western Virginia Water Authority is a public service authority formed on July 1, 2004 through the consolidation of water and wastewater operations from the City of Roanoke and Roanoke County under the Virginia Water and Waste Authorities Act. It serves more than 69,000 water customer accounts and 60,000 wastewater customer accounts across five localities — the City of Roanoke, Roanoke County, Franklin County, Botetourt County, and the Towns of Boones Mill and Vinton — and additionally operates water and wastewater systems under contract for smaller municipalities including the Town of Fincastle and Craig-New Castle. The Authority is governed by an eight-member Board of Directors representing each member locality, with Executive Director Michael McEvoy leading day-to-day operations.

The Authority's infrastructure includes over 1,500 miles of drinking water pipes, 6,000+ fire hydrants, 51 drinking water storage tanks (each holding 500,000 to 2 million gallons), and a treatment capacity of 56 million gallons per day (currently treating 19 million gallons daily) drawing from the Carvins Cove reservoir and 11,200-acre watershed. The Water Pollution Control Plant handles 37 million gallons of wastewater per day across a 100+ acre site. Supporting technology includes a GIS-based water service line inventory compliant with the EPA Lead and Copper Rule Revision, a Customer Connect portal providing daily and hourly consumption data with leak-alert notifications, an ArcGIS-backed public map portal, a smart reservoir system developed in collaboration with Virginia Tech for source water prediction, and a biogas-to-renewable natural gas facility jointly operated with Roanoke Gas Company.

Revenue is generated primarily through recurring monthly water and wastewater service charges, with rates approved annually by the Board of Directors; this is supplemented by one-time connection and new-service installation fees and fee-for-service contract operations for partner municipalities. The Authority is deploying a $218.2 million five-year capital improvement program ($121.7M water, $96.5M wastewater), and is investing in long-range water supply planning and infrastructure expansion to support a planned Google data center at the Botetourt Center at Greenfield. The Authority is debt-financed as a governmental entity and does not have equity ownership.

Name

Western Virginia Water Authority

Legal name

Western Virginia Water Authority

Website

https://westernvawater.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Public water and wastewater utility authority serving 69,000+ water accounts and 60,000+ wastewater accounts across five localities in Virginia's Roanoke Valley. Operates 1,500+ miles of pipes and treatment infrastructure for residential, commercial, and municipal customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water and Wastewater Utility Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Sanitary Services (4950), Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900)

akta.pro primary industry

Water Supply & Wastewater Utilities Administration (BPAIACAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water Quality Monitoring, Compliance & Reporting (Sampling, Lab, Regulatory) (EUANAAAG), Watershed/Source Water & Raw Water Quality Monitoring (intakes, reservoirs, groundwater) (EUANAJAH), Stormwater Management & MS4 Compliance Services (BPALAMAL)

Keywords

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

Headquarters

HQ city

Roanoke

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Water Service Billing: Recurring utility charges for drinking water service based on consumption volume. Rates are approved annually by the Board of Directors and support all operation and maintenance expenses of water distribution and treatment facilities.
2. Wastewater/Sewer Service Billing: Recurring utility charges for sanitary sewer collection and treatment services. Residential customers billed using Winter Averaging methodology based on January-February-March consumption. Commercial customers billed based on metered usage.
3. Connection Fees and New Service Installation: One-time fees for new service connections, including water and sewer hookups for residential and commercial development.
4. Contract Operations Services: Fee-for-service contracts to operate water and wastewater systems for municipalities such as the Town of Fincastle and Craig-New Castle.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Western Virginia Water Authority is a regional public service authority that provides regulated drinking water distribution and wastewater collection and treatment to residential, commercial, and industrial customers across the greater Roanoke Valley in southwest Virginia. The Authority sells monthly metered water and sewer service to more than 69,000 drinking water accounts and over 60,000 wastewater accounts, charges one-time connection fees for new service installation, and operates the water and wastewater systems of the Towns of Fincastle and Craig-New Castle under fee-for-service contracts.

Product overview

The Western Virginia Water Authority operates as a public utility providing integrated water and wastewater services across multiple Virginia localities. The core offerings consist of drinking water distribution (serving over 69,000 accounts across 1,500+ miles of pipes) and wastewater collection/treatment (serving 60,000+ accounts). Supporting these core services are customer-facing digital products including the Customer Web Portal for bill payment and account management, Customer Connect for consumption monitoring, Water Service Line Inventory with GIS mapping for lead compliance, and Water Conservation Programs. Additional services include Carvins Cove Recreation, Capital Improvement Program management, Water Quality Reporting, Wastewater Epidemiology, and the Biogas to Renewable Natural Gas Project. The Authority maintains infrastructure including 51 drinking water storage tanks, over 6,000 fire hydrants, and the Water Pollution Control Plant treating 37 million gallons daily.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Water Distribution Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Water loss reduction through leak detection and infrastructure maintenance
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 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

Integration4 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, secondary and minor.

• GooglecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 September 2025Google is developing a data center at Botetourt Center at Greenfield. The Authority is working to meet utility needs for this new customer. Botetourt County and Google are funding long-range water supply studies and infrastructure improvements. Carvins Cove serves as initial water source, with Google benefiting from superior water quality allowing repeated water use in cooling processes.
• Virginia TechsecondaryTechnology or Integration · 1 April 2019Virginia Tech launched a system to predict water conditions in the Authority's Carvins Cove reservoir. Collaborative effort to improve water quality management using smart reservoir technology.
• Roanoke Gas CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint project to convert biogas from the Authority's Water Pollution Control Plant into renewable natural gas (RNG). Both organizations participated in ribbon-cutting ceremony for the RNG facility that benefits the community.
• HomeServe USAminorGTM or Marketing PartnerHomeServeUSA partnership offers customers optional service line protection plans for exterior water and sewer lines and in-home plumbing. HomeServe is BBB accredited with A+ rating. Purchasing these plans is optional for customers.
• Roanoke Area Youth Substance Abuse CoalitionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative sponsorship of prescription drug take-back events with area law enforcement and DEA to provide secure medication disposal, protect waterways, and prevent drug abuse.
• Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDEA co-sponsors prescription drug take-back events providing federal oversight and support for secure medication disposal programs.
• Blue Ridge PBSminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBlue Ridge PBS produced a documentary for the Authority's 20th anniversary detailing the formation and operation of the Western Virginia Water Authority and how the resilient water system continues to shape the valley.

Scale indicators17 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Newport News Waterworks: Virginia-based regional water utility serving the Peninsula region (Newport News, Hampton, Poquoson, parts of York County and James City County) — comparable as a Virginia water utility with similar regulatory environment but distinct service territory in the Tidewater region rather than Western Virginia.

Direct peers

• DC Water: Multi-jurisdictional water and wastewater authority serving the District of Columbia and surrounding jurisdictions — comparable in operating water treatment and wastewater collection/treatment at similar MGD scale with public-authority governance.
• Denver Water: Largest water utility in Colorado serving 1.5 million people across the Denver metro area — directly comparable regional drinking water utility with reservoir-based supply, treatment infrastructure, and drought contingency planning similar in concept to Carvins Cove.
• Louisville Water Company: Municipal water utility serving Louisville Metro and surrounding counties in Kentucky — directly comparable as a regional drinking water-only utility with treatment capacity, distribution networks, and water quality programs of similar scale.
• Fairfax Water: Virginia regional water authority providing drinking water service across Northern Virginia — same legal structure (Water and Waste Authorities Act), exclusive service territory, Board-approved rates, and comparable mid-large scale utility operations.
• Hampton Roads Sanitation District: Regional wastewater and sanitary sewer authority serving 20+ localities in coastal Virginia — directly comparable as a multi-jurisdictional Virginia water/wastewater authority with regional service area and similar governance model.
• Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission: Bi-county regional water and wastewater utility serving Montgomery and Prince George's counties in Maryland — comparable as a large multi-jurisdictional water/wastewater authority with similar scale of accounts, infrastructure footprint, and Board governance structure.

Broad incumbents

• American Water Works Company: Largest publicly traded US water and wastewater utility serving millions of customers across 14 states — broader incumbent in the same regulated utility space, with overlapping capabilities in water/wastewater treatment and infrastructure management but operating at vastly greater scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC1wZ8emVESh3m9NAXbiRu3A
• Facebookfacebook.com/westernvawater
• Instagraminstagram.com/western_va_water_authority

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 Western Virginia Water Authority