GVRZ

What GVRZ does

GVRZ (Gewässerschutzverband Region Zug) is a Swiss statutory public association — a municipal wastewater protection association (Gewässerschutzverband) — founded in 1970 and headquartered at the ARA Schönau plant in Cham, canton Zug. It is owned and governed by 18 member municipalities spanning cantons Zug, Luzern, Schwyz, and Zürich, with a Delegates' Assembly (Delegiertenversammlung) and Board of Directors (Vorstand) representing each member. The organization is led by Managing Director Simone Bützer, who took over in November 2025, succeeding prior leadership.

The association's core product is regional wastewater collection and treatment for approximately 175,000 residents. It operates a multi-stage treatment facility (ARA Schönau) designed for 245,000 population equivalents with a maximum intake capacity of 1,600 liters per second. Treatment stages include mechanical screening, sand and grit removal, preclarification, biological nitrogen conversion, secondary clarification, micro-pollutant removal via powdered activated carbon (PAK), and sand filtration, before discharge of purified water into the Lorze river. Supporting infrastructure includes over 90 km of collection canals, 23 pumping stations, and 14 stormwater overflow basins, with a near-unique ring-pipeline system encircling Lake Zug. GVRZ also maintains one of the largest interdisciplinary digital drainage models of its kind, used for network planning, and offers a public WEB-GIS GO facility visualization platform plus standardized General Drainage Planning (GEP) documents to member municipalities.

GVRZ's business model is that of a regulated municipal utility rather than a commercial enterprise. Primary revenue derives from recurring municipal fees paid by its 18 member municipalities, supplemented by unit-priced ancillary services — notably acceptance of dewatered sludge (CHF 670/t TS), fresh sludge (CHF 420/t TS), mobile sanitation wastewater (CHF 46.40/m³), road-collector backwash water (CHF 10/m³), and construction site wastewater discharge (CHF 1/m³). The organization is not publicly traded and discloses financials only via its annual report (most recent edition: 2025).

Name

GVRZ

Legal name

Gewässerschutzverband Region Zug

Website

https://gvrz.ch

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

GVRZ (Gewässerschutzverband Region Zug) is a Swiss statutory public association that collects and treats wastewater for ~175,000 residents across 18 municipalities in cantons Zug, Luzern, Schwyz, and Zürich, operating the ARA Schönau plant and a 90+ km canal network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cham

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Municipal Wastewater Treatment Fees: GVRZ operates as a public association funded by its 18 member municipalities across cantons Zug, Luzern, Schwyz, and Zürich. Revenue is generated through municipal fees for wastewater collection and treatment services.
2. Service Fees (Sludge, Wastewater, Construction Site Services): Fees charged for accepting sludge (fresh and dewatered), construction site wastewater, mobile sanitation facilities, backwash water, and construction site power. These are unit-priced services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

GVRZ is a municipal wastewater protection association that operates the ARA Schönau wastewater treatment plant in Cham and a regional canal network of more than 90 km to collect and treat wastewater from approximately 175,000 residents across 18 municipalities in the cantons of Zug, Luzern, Schwyz, and Zürich. It also provides sludge and wastewater acceptance, construction site supply and disposal services, digital drainage modeling, and the public WEB-GIS GO facility visualization platform.

Product overview

GVRZ (Gewässerschutzverband Region Zug) operates as a regional wastewater protection association serving approximately 175,000 residents across 18 municipalities in the cantons of Zug, Lucerne, Schwyz, and Zurich. The core offering consists of the ARA Schönau wastewater treatment plant (designed for 245,000 population equivalents, processing up to 1,600 L/s) and an extensive canal network of over 90 km with 23 pumping stations and 14 stormwater overflow basins. The multi-stage wastewater treatment process includes screening, sand traps, preclarification, biological treatment, secondary clarification, micro-pollutant removal using activated carbon, and sand filtration before discharge to the Lorze river. Supporting services include sewage sludge and wastewater acceptance, construction site water management, and general drainage planning (GEP) document services. GVRZ also provides digital tools including a WEB-GIS facility visualization platform and an interdisciplinary digital drainage model spanning the entire catchment area.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ARA Schönau Wastewater Treatment Plant Central wastewater treatment facility in Cham designed for 245,000 population equivalents with peak hydraulic capacity of 1,600 L/s. Performs multi-stage treatment including mechanical screening, sand removal, biological treatment, micro-pollutant removal, and sand filtration. Serves 18 member municipalities.
• Regional Sewer Network (Kanalnetz) Regional wastewater conveyance infrastructure covering more than 90 km with 23 pumping stations and 14 stormwater overflow basins, including a ring pipeline around Lake Zug. Collects and transports wastewater from member municipalities to the central treatment plant.
• Sludge and Wastewater Acceptance Service Paid acceptance service for external sludge and wastewater deliveries, priced per tonne of dry solids (CHF 330 per tonne dry solids) for dewatered sludge and per cubic meter for other inputs, subject to discharge permits. Available to third parties beyond member municipalities.
• Construction Site Supply and Disposal Service Service for construction sites to draw process water and discharge construction-related wastewater into the GVRZ sewer network, priced per cubic meter (water supply at CHF 1.00/m³ and wastewater discharge at CHF 4.00/m³).
• WEB-GIS GO Facility Visualization Publicly accessible digital web-GIS platform that visualizes GVRZ infrastructure facilities for citizens, member municipalities, and external stakeholders.
• General Drainage Planning (GEP) Documents Published general drainage planning (Generelle Entwässerungsplanung) documents for member municipalities, made publicly available via the GVRZ downloads area to support coordinated wastewater and stormwater planning.
• Digital Drainage Modeling Interdisciplinary digital model of the regional drainage network used for capacity analysis, planning, and infrastructure optimization across the GVRZ service area.

Quantifiable outcome

• Achieved measurable improvement in water quality in the Zug region

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• ARA Region Bern AG: Operates the regional wastewater treatment plant serving Bern and surrounding municipalities. Directly comparable to GVRZ as a Swiss regional ARA operating multi-stage treatment for a multi-municipal catchment under a public-utility governance model.
• ARA Luzern AG: Regional wastewater association serving the Lucerne area. Comparable to GVRZ in operating a municipal ARA and collection network under a member-municipality funding model in the Swiss context.
• AVA Altenrhein: Abwasserverband Altenrhein operates the regional wastewater treatment plant serving multiple municipalities in eastern Switzerland (St. Gallen / Thurgau). Comparable to GVRZ as a multi-municipal regional ARA with industrial and household catchment.
• Entsorgung + Recycling Zürich (ERZ): Municipal waste and wastewater utility for the City of Zurich. Comparable to GVRZ as a Swiss municipal utility providing wastewater services with significant infrastructure scale and advanced treatment, though broader in scope.
• ProRheno AG: Regional wastewater treatment operator for the Basel area, operating the ARA Basel treatment plant. Closely comparable to GVRZ as a Swiss municipal wastewater utility with multi-stage treatment and a regulated franchise across multiple municipalities.

Others

• Eawag (Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology): Swiss federal research institute focused on aquatic systems including wastewater treatment. Comparable to GVRZ as a Swiss ecosystem participant driving advances in micro-pollutant removal and treatment technology that GVRZ has already adopted.
• VSA (Verband Schweizer Abwasser- und Gewässerschutzfachleute): Swiss professional association for wastewater and water protection specialists. Comparable as a thematically-related ecosystem participant that defines the standards (e.g., VSA-DSS data model) GVRZ implements in its digital drainage planning.

Broad incumbents

• Suez Water Technologies & Solutions: International environmental services group operating municipal water and wastewater contracts worldwide. Comparable to GVRZ at a category level as a broad incumbent serving municipal utility customers with similar treatment technology offerings.
• Veolia Water Technologies & Solutions: Global operator and technology provider for municipal and industrial water/wastewater treatment. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the wastewater treatment space that competes for municipal concession contracts similar to the one GVRZ holds in Zug.

Regional players

• Industrielle Werke Basel (IWB): Multi-utility of the Canton of Basel-Stadt providing energy, water, and related services. Comparable as a Swiss regional utility with overlapping regulatory and infrastructure characteristics, though not a dedicated wastewater operator.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gew%C3%A4sserschutzverband-region-zugersee-k%C3%BCssnachtersee-%C3%A4gerisee

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 GVRZ