Agència Catalana de l'Aigua

What Agència Catalana de l'Aigua does

Agència Catalana de l'Aigua (ACA) is the autonomous water management agency of the Generalitat de Catalunya, established in 2000 and headquartered in Barcelona. It holds exclusive regulatory and operational authority over the entire water cycle across Catalonia, including water supply (potabilization, desalination), wastewater treatment (565+ public treatment plants), water regeneration for reuse, sludge management, flood risk management, drought response, and environmental protection of water bodies. The agency operates two major desalination plants (Tordera and Prat), the Xarxa Ter-Llobregat supplying the Barcelona metropolitan region, and runs the proprietary AETR real-time hydrological monitoring system covering river flows, reservoirs, and meteorological data across six territorial demarcations.

ACA serves all 947 Catalan municipalities (ajuntaments), supramunicipal entities (consells comarcals, consorcis, mancomunitats), industrial water users, agricultural irrigation communities (comunitats de regants), and ultimately citizens across Catalonia. The agency's revenue model is primarily fiscal rather than commercial: an annual water canon (cànon de l'aigua) tax funds approximately €450 million per year in sanitation infrastructure investment, supplemented by regulation canon, occupancy fees, administrative tariffs, and co-financing from European Union programs (FEDER 2021-2027, Next Generation EU). Tariff approvals for high-level supply services are made by ACA, with final distribution tariffs validated through the Comissió de preus of the Departament de Territori, Habitatge i Transició Ecològica. The agency distributes grants (subvencions) to municipalities for water supply, sanitation, and environmental restoration projects, and operates public-facing digital services including the Portal de la sequera, Observatori del preu de l'aigua, and an open data portal.

Name

Agència Catalana de l'Aigua

Legal name

Agència Catalana de l'Aigua

Website

https://aca.gencat.cat

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Agència Catalana de l'Aigua is the Generalitat de Catalunya's autonomous water management agency, operating 565+ wastewater treatment plants, two desalination facilities, and the Xarxa Ter-Llobregat serving 947 Catalan municipalities, funded primarily by an annual €450M water canon tax.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water Utility Management

NAICS

Regulation and Administration of Communications, Electric, Gas, and Other Utilities (92613), Administration of Air and Water Resource and Solid Waste Management Programs (924110), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Water Resources Administration (Watersheds, Rivers, Groundwater) (BPAIAMAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water Quality Monitoring, Compliance & Reporting (Sampling, Lab, Regulatory) (EUANAAAG), Environmental Permitting & Impact Assessment (EIA/NEPA) (BPAIAMAK)

Keywords

• Water cycle management
• Hydraulic infrastructure
• Wastewater treatment
• Water resource regulation
• Drought and flood management

Headquarters

HQ city

Barcelona

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Cànon de l'aigua (Water Canon/Tax): Annual average investment of approximately €450 million funded through the water canon tax, which applies to domestic, industrial, agricultural water usage, and supplying entities. The tax is the primary financing mechanism for the operation and maintenance of 565+ public treatment plants and water infrastructure.
2. Cànon de regulació (Regulation Canon): Tax on water regulation services, including dam and reservoir operations that benefit users downstream.
3. Cànon d'ocupació o utilització (Occupancy Canon): Fees for occupation or use of public hydraulic domain areas.
4. Taxes (Service Fees): Various administrative fees for authorizations, concessions, inspections, and other regulatory services related to water management.
5. European Union Funding: Co-financing from European funds including FEDER (Fons Europeu de Desenvolupament Regional), Next Generation EU, and other programs for infrastructure investments such as the Darnius Boadella dam valve renovation (€1.3 million co-financed by FEDER 2021-2027).
6. Subvencions (Subsidies/Grants): ACA administers subsidies for municipalities and entities for water supply, sanitation, and environmental projects, including the 2026 line of €2.8 million for riverbank and wetland recovery.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Agència Catalana de l'Aigua (ACA) is the public hydraulic administration of the Generalitat de Catalunya, responsible for the entire water cycle across Catalonia. The agency manages water supply infrastructure (dams, reservoirs, desalination plants, the Ter-Llobregat network), wastewater treatment (565+ public treatment plants), water regeneration, and sludge management. It also performs regulatory functions including water canon taxation, drought and flood risk management, and supervision of municipal water services.

Product overview

Agència Catalana de l'Aigua (ACA) is a government agency of the Generalitat de Catalunya responsible for water resource management in Catalonia. The agency operates a comprehensive portfolio of water management services organized around the water cycle: from water potabilization, desalination (Dessalinitzadora de la Tordera, Dessalinitzadora del Prat), and supply networks (including the Xarxa Ter-Llobregat for the Barcelona metropolitan region), through wastewater treatment (with over 565 public depuradores/EDARs), water regeneration (ERA stations), and sludge management. ACA provides public-facing digital services including the Portal de la sequera for drought monitoring, the Observatori del preu de l'aigua for pricing transparency, the AETR application for real-time water data visualization, and an Open Data portal. Additional services include flood risk management, water taxation (Cànon de l'aigua), grant programs (Subvencions), laboratory services, and the monitoring of reservoir reserves.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Water Cycle Management (Gestió del cicle de l'aigua) Comprehensive water cycle management service covering potabilization, desalination, wastewater treatment, water regeneration, and sludge management. Ensures water quality and availability from source to municipal storage facilities across Catalonia.
• Hydraulic Infrastructure Management (Infraestructures hidràuliques) Management of water infrastructure including dams and reservoirs, supply networks, water treatment stations, desalination plants, wastewater treatment plants (EDAR), water regeneration stations (ERA), and sludge treatment facilities.
• Potabilization (Potabilització) Water treatment processes to make water safe for human consumption, ranging from simple treatment in mountain areas to complex processes in urban zones.
• Desalination (Dessalinització) Seawater desalination services through the Dessalinitzadora de la Tordera and Dessalinitzadora del Prat facilities to supplement freshwater supply during drought conditions.
• Wastewater Treatment (Depuració d'aigües residuals) Treatment of domestic and industrial wastewater at 565+ public treatment plants across Catalonia. Industrial water can comprise up to 30% of total treated flow at any facility.
• Water Regeneration (Regeneració d'aigua) Advanced treatment of purified wastewater for reuse in industrial, agricultural, municipal, or recreational applications, supporting the circular economy in water management.
• Sludge Management (Gestió de fangs) Treatment and management of sludge generated from wastewater treatment processes across the public sanitation network.
• Flood Risk Management (Gestió del risc d'inundació) Flood risk management service including flood zone mapping and coordination with Barcelona Supercomputing Center for advanced hydrological modeling, supporting flood risk reduction across Catalonia.
• Laboratory Services (Laboratori) Water quality testing and analysis laboratory services for monitoring and control of water resources, supporting regulatory compliance and operational decisions.
• Reservoir Status Monitoring (Estat de les reserves d'aigua als embassaments) Real-time monitoring and reporting service for water reserves in Catalonia's reservoirs, providing public access to current water availability and reservoir levels.

Quantifiable outcome

• 565+ public wastewater treatment plants operated across Catalonia, ensuring proper sanitation for municipalities
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC)coreTechnology or Integration · 29 May 2026Collaboration between ACA and BSC to develop a new tool for improving flood risk management in Catalonia. The partnership leverages BSC's supercomputing capabilities for advanced hydrological modeling and risk assessment.
• Xarxa per a la Conservació de la Natura (XCN)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026ACA and XCN collaborated on river custody (custòdia fluvial) initiatives, conducting virtual sessions and publishing resources to promote citizen involvement in river and stream conservation. Marked by 10th anniversary celebrations in 2026.
• Consorci d'Aigües de Tarragona (CAT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-financing partnership for water infrastructure: ACA co-funded (50%) the €5.6 million Cunit water storage tank project. The tank, with 25,000 m3 capacity (10 Olympic swimming pools), is energy self-sufficient with integrated photovoltaic park, representing innovative water infrastructure development.
• Ens d'Abastament de la xarxa Ter LlobregatcoreTechnology or IntegrationPublic entity managing public infrastructure for transport, potabilization, and desalination within the Ter-Llobregat network that supplies the Barcelona metropolitan region. ACA provides regulatory oversight, service supervision, investment plan approval, and tariff setting.
• Aigües de BarcelonacoreTechnology or IntegrationCompany operating privately-owned facilities within the Barcelona metropolitan water supply system. Operates under ACA regulation and supervision as part of the Xarxa Ter-Llobregat framework.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Suez Water Spain (Suez Spain): Global water services group operating wastewater treatment and supply networks across Spain, comparable to ACA in its wastewater treatment and water cycle management mandate, though as a private-sector operator.
• Veolia Water Spain: Major private-sector water and wastewater services operator in Spain, including concessions that overlap with ACA's territory. Comparable as a wastewater treatment, desalination, and municipal service provider across Spanish regions.
• Confederación Hidrográfica del Ebro: Spanish inter-regional river basin authority managing the Ebro basin that ACA participates in for shared water resource planning. Comparable as a public hydraulic administration with overlapping regulatory and infrastructure coordination roles in Catalonia's watershed.
• Acciona Agua: Private-sector water treatment and desalination operator with active presence in Spain and Mediterranean markets. Comparable to ACA on desalination, wastewater treatment, and infrastructure management activities.

Direct peers

• Aigües de Barcelona: Private concessionaire operating water supply and sanitation within the Barcelona metropolitan area under ACA's regulatory framework. Directly comparable as a primary service delivery partner whose activities are governed by ACA tariff and concession oversight.
• Consorci d'Aigües de Tarragona (CAT): Supramunicipal water entity co-financing the €5.6M Cunit tank with ACA and operating within the Catalan high-level supply network. Directly comparable as a regional water supply peer regulated by ACA.

Others

• Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC): Technology and R&D partner collaborating with ACA on flood risk modeling. Comparable as an ecosystem enabler providing the computational capability ACA uses to differentiate its hydrological forecasting and risk management services.

Regional players

• Confederación Hidrográfica del Júcar: Spanish river basin authority managing the Júcar basin on the Mediterranean coast. Comparable to ACA as a public hydraulic administration with similar water resource, supply, and flood risk responsibilities in a parallel Mediterranean context.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/aigua_cat
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCFDQHpVMLaUwvxVetT1NnKQ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aiguacat

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Agència Catalana de l'Aigua