What Wasserverband Bersenbruck does

Wasserverband Bersenbrück is a public-law corporation (Körperschaft öffentlichen Rechts) headquartered in Bersenbrück, Lower Saxony, that supplies drinking water and manages wastewater disposal for approximately 100,700 residents across the Samtgemeinden Artland, Bersenbrück, Neuenkirchen, and Fürstenau. Founded in 1964 and employing 122 people (including 6 apprentices in 2025), the association operates a vertically integrated asset base comprising seven waterworks, five sewage treatment plants, roughly 1,700 kilometers of pipeline networks, 378 sewage channels, 383 pressure pipelines, 356 rain canals, 178 retention basins, 12 storage tanks holding approximately 30 million liters, and more than 120 pump stations. In 2024, it delivered 7.2 million cubic meters of drinking water (127 liters per person per day) and treated 4.8 million cubic meters of wastewater, with reported water losses of only 9% — the lowest disclosed rate in Europe.

Treatment technology spans conventional mechanical screening and sand traps, biological aeration (Belebungsbecken) with biological phosphorus removal, anaerobic sludge digestion in Faulturm towers at 39°C with combined heat and power (Blockheizkraftwerk) biogas recovery, two-stage rapid filtration for iron, manganese, and carbon dioxide removal, and constructed wetland (Vererdungsanlage) reed-bed sludge stabilization. Removal performance is documented at 97–99% for carbon compounds, 95–98% for nitrogen, and 95–96% for phosphorus.

Revenues are generated almost entirely through regulated municipal tariffs set annually: a per-cubic-meter water consumption fee (€1.04/m³), a daily water base fee (€0.16/day for meters up to 5m³), a wastewater fee of €2.51/m³, a rainwater fee of €4.64 per 20 m² of sealed surface, plus one-off connection fees (Baukostenzuschuss and Hausanschlusskosten) and ancillary service charges for fecal sludge disposal, standpipe rental, and emergency callouts. 2024 Umsatzerlöse totaled €23.8 million against €8.5 million of infrastructure investment. Customers are segmented geographically: residential households (primary), commercial and industrial businesses with pretreatment obligations (e.g., food processors such as Kemper Fleischwarenfabrik at Nortrup), properties in outlying areas served via pressure drainage, and agricultural operations participating in groundwater-protection research. Distribution is direct-to-customer with online meter-reading, application, and billing self-service.

Name

Wasserverband Bersenbruck

Legal name

Wasserverband Bersenbrück, Körperschaft öffentlichen Rechts

Website

https://wasserverband-bsb.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1964

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Wasserverband Bersenbrück is a public-law municipal utility in Lower Saxony that supplies drinking water and treats wastewater for roughly 100,700 residents across the Nordkreis Osnabrück region via seven waterworks, five sewage treatment plants, and 1,700 km of pipelines.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal water and wastewater utility services

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (221310), Sewage Treatment Facilities (22132), Water and Sewer Line and Related Structures Construction (23711)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623)

akta.pro primary industry

Treated Drinking Water Transmission Pipelines (Bulk Conveyance) (TLAGAHAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Raw Water Conveyance & Transmission (Aqueducts, Mains, Pumping Stations) (EUANAAAB), Wastewater Interceptor & Regional Conveyance Pipelines (Long-Distance) (TLAGAHAE), Water & Wastewater Pipeline Construction (Mains, Force Mains, Interceptors) (IMAFAGAC), Non-Potable/Industrial Water Conveyance Pipelines (Bulk/Interbasin) (TLAGAHAC)

Keywords

• Drinking water supply
• Wastewater treatment
• Municipal water utility
• Sewer infrastructure
• Water distribution services

Headquarters

HQ city

Bersenbrück

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Water Supply Fees: Charges for drinking water supply including consumption-based fees (EUR/m³) and daily base fees. Revenue from providing treated water to approximately 100,700 people in the service area.
2. Wastewater Collection and Treatment Fees: Charges for sewage collection and treatment based on water consumption (Schmutzwassergebühr) and for rainwater management based on sealed surface area (Regenwassergebühr). Also includes fees for special services like fecal sludge collection.
3. Infrastructure Connection Fees: One-time fees for connecting properties to water supply (Baukostenzuschuss and Hausanschlusskosten) and wastewater networks (Kanalbaubeitrag). Also includes fees for pressure drainage systems in outlying areas.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Wasserverband Bersenbrück supplies drinking water to approximately 100,700 people across the Nordkreis Osnabrück region through seven waterworks and a 1,700 km pipeline network, and provides wastewater collection and treatment through five sewage treatment plants with a sewer network of 378 channels, 383 pressure pipelines, and 178 retention basins. Services are billed via consumption-based and recurring daily base fees, with additional offerings for property connections, fecal sludge disposal, standpipe rental, and emergency response.

Product overview

Wasserverband Bersenbruck is a public utility association providing integrated water management services to approximately 100,700 people in the northern district of Osnabrück. The organization operates a vertically integrated infrastructure consisting of drinking water supply (Trinkwasserversorgung) through seven waterworks (Wasserwerke Ahausen, Ohrte, Plaggenschale, Engter, Engter-Niewedde, Fürstenau, and Vörden) distributing 7.2 million cubic meters annually via 1,700 kilometers of pipeline network; and wastewater disposal (Abwasserentsorgung) through five treatment plants (Kläranlagen Bersenbrück, Quakenbrück, Nortrup, Neuenkirchen, and Fürstenau) with a sewer network of 378 channels, 383 pressure pipelines, 356 rain canals, and 178 retention basins. Supporting services include the Trinkwasser-Ampel consumption indicator, water meter management, tariff administration, emergency services, and property drainage consulting. The organization invested 8.5 million euros in 2024 infrastructure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Water losses in public water supply at only 9%, the lowest in Europe (compared to 29% in England and 25% in France)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Wetsus (European Excellence Center for Sustainable Water Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Wetsus leads the NERTHUS (Novel Engineered Resources Targeting Holistic Use of Soils) Interregio project on soil health and groundwater protection. The project runs until 2029 and involves cross-border collaboration between northern Netherlands and northwest Germany. Wetsus coordinates the project and provides expertise in sustainable water technology.
• Hochschule OsnabrückcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025University partner in the NERTHUS research project focused on soil quality and functions. The university contributes research capabilities to analyze soil microorganism communities and their relationship to water quality.
• Universität OldenburgcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025University partner in the NERTHUS project contributing to soil research and analysis of microbiome composition using next-generation sequencing techniques.
• Landwirtschaftskammer NiedersachsencoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Agricultural chamber partner in the NERTHUS project bringing practical agricultural expertise to research on improving soil fertility while reducing nitrogen inputs to protect groundwater.
• 3N Kompetenzzentrum (Werlte)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Competence center partner in the NERTHUS project contributing expertise in bioeconomy and sustainable resource use related to soil and water management.
• Kemper Fleischwarenfabrik (Nortrup)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2025Meat processing company whose decision to build a third plant prompted joint planning with the water association for a new flotation facility at the Nortrup wastewater treatment plant in 2011, funded by European Regional Development Fund.
• Wasserverband WittlagecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint operation of the Engter-Niewedde waterworks. Both water associations share infrastructure and costs for water production from 3 wells serving the southeastern area of the Altkreis Bersenbrück.
• Refill BersenbrückminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal initiative allowing citizens to refill water bottles for free at participating locations, promoting tap water consumption and environmental sustainability.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Kommunale Wasserwerke (KWL) Leipzig: Municipal drinking water supplier for the city of Leipzig and surrounding region. Directly comparable public-mandate, regulated-utility drinking water operation with treatment plants and pipeline network — operating peer for benchmarking unit economics and tariffs.
• ENNI Stadt & Service Niederrhein: Municipal utility company in North Rhine-Westphalia providing integrated water supply and wastewater services to a defined regional catchment. Directly comparable vertically integrated utility model, though operated as a city-owned company (Anstalt des öffentlichen Rechts) rather than a Verband.
• Harzwasserwerke GmbH: State-owned water utility supplying drinking water across Lower Saxony and beyond from Harz mountain reservoirs. Comparable public-mandate drinking-water transmission and treatment model with similar long-distance pipeline infrastructure focus.
• Oldenburgisch-Ostfriesischer Wasserverband (OOWV): Largest water and wastewater association in northwestern Germany, operating under the same Körperschaft öffentlichen Rechts model. Directly comparable legal form, geography (adjacent Lower Saxony), and integrated water/sewage service offering — the closest structural peer to Wasserverband Bersenbrück at meaningfully larger scale.
• Zweckverband Bodensee-Wasserversorgung: Long-distance drinking water supply Zweckverband serving 320+ municipalities in Baden-Württemberg from Lake Constance. Directly comparable bulk-conveyance, multi-municipality governance, and Verband legal form, but operates at much larger scale and longer transmission distances.
• Wasserverband Wittlage: Neighboring Wasserbeschaffungsverband in Lower Saxony that jointly operates the Engter-Niewedde waterworks with Wasserverband Bersenbrück. Identical legal form, similar municipal-utility structure, and overlapping service territory make it the most directly comparable operating peer.

Broad incumbents

• Hamburg Wasser: Hamburg's municipal water and wastewater utility serving ~2M residents. Comparable regulated-utility water and sewage model under public ownership, providing a major-city benchmark for vertically integrated German water operations.
• Stadtwerke Münster GmbH: Municipal multi-utility in Münster, Germany, providing drinking water, wastewater, energy, and public transport. Comparable water and wastewater operations within a broader municipal-utility portfolio; useful as a benchmark for mid-sized German Stadtwerke with water-sewage as core.
• GELSENWASSER AG: One of Germany's largest private water utilities, supplying drinking water to multiple federal states and operating wastewater services. Comparable end-to-end water/wastewater offering but at national scale and with commercial ownership, providing an established-private benchmark for the German regulated water sector.
• Berliner Wasserbetriebe (BWB): Berlin's municipal water and wastewater utility, operating under public ownership. Same integrated water + wastewater mandate but at metropolitan scale (~3.6M customers), serving as the benchmark for large German municipal water operators.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCylojI7oK6yBV1j9Q1zAsSw
• Facebookfacebook.com/182296245116505

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Wasserverband Bersenbruck