aquatel

What aquatel does

Aquatel SPRL is a privately held, family-owned Belgian company headquartered in Verviers that has operated in the utility metering domain for more than 25 years (founded 1997). The business operates along two complementary arms: (i) a service line that performs installation, annual reading, and heating-and-water cost allocation (répartition des frais de chauffage et d'eau) for multi-unit residential buildings, and (ii) a product distribution (négoce) line that supplies water, thermal energy, and gas meters plus communication interfaces to installers, developers, engineering firms, and industrial buyers. Core technology is built around European-certified metering hardware: the RFC 868 wireless heat cost allocator with dual temperature sensors, the Supercal and Superstatic thermal energy meters (including no-moving-part fluidic-oscillation designs such as the Superstatic 440), a broad water-meter portfolio spanning single-jet, multi-jet, volumetric, Woltmann, and ultrasonic (e.g., Qalcosonic, OCTAVE) variants, and diaphragm gas meters. Communication options cover M-Bus, Wireless M-Bus (OMS 868 MHz), MODbus, BACnet, LON, LoRaWAN, NFC, and impulse outputs, enabling integration into building management systems.

Revenue is generated through four streams: one-time hardware sales, 10-year recurring rental subscriptions for heating cost allocators and meters (with included warranty and annual reading), professional installation and replacement services, and annual reading-and-décompte billing services. Pricing is structured either as rental (unit price per apartment, billed annually, 21% VAT) or as purchase (owner pays for equipment with reduced 6% VAT for buildings more than 10 years old, plus separate annual service fees). Aquatel serves property managers (gérants), building owners, syndic, social-housing companies, promoters, heating installers, engineering firms, and industrial customers primarily in Belgium, with product sales extending into the Benelux, France, and Germany. The go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, with dedicated regional account managers and a customer portal (portail.aquatel.be) for consumption data and document access.

Name

aquatel

Legal name

Aquatel SPRL

Website

https://aquatel.be

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Aquatel is a Belgian family-owned company that supplies utility meters and provides heating cost allocation and meter reading services for multi-unit residential buildings across Belgium and the wider Benelux/France/Germany region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Utility Metering and Heating Cost Allocation Services

NAICS

Totalizing Fluid Meter and Counting Device Manufacturing (334514), Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (221310)

SIC

Totalizing Fluid Meters & Counting Devices (3824), Water Supply (4941)

akta.pro primary industry

Submetering & Multi-Unit Property Billing (MUDs, submeters, RUBS, landlord/tenant billing) (EUANAIAK)

Keywords

• Utility metering services
• Heating cost allocation
• Thermal energy meters
• Water meter distribution
• Remote meter reading

Headquarters

HQ city

Verviers

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Meter Product Sales: Sale of water meters (15-300mm), thermal energy meters (15-300mm), gas meters (20-150mm), and communication interfaces. Products include various technologies: single-jet, multi-jet, volumetric, axial turbine, ultrasonic. Revenue from one-time product sales to installers, developers, and building managers.
2. Meter Rental Services: 10-year rental contracts for heating cost allocators and meters. Includes annual reading and annual cost allocation. Warranty of 10 years included. Price calculated per unit per apartment, charged to tenant in annual statement.
3. Installation Services: (Re)placement of heating cost allocators, water meters, and energy meters. Services include initial installation and replacement of existing equipment.
4. Meter Reading and Cost Allocation Services: Annual meter reading (radio or visual) and heating/water cost distribution services for apartment buildings. Transparent annual statements prepared locally by dedicated case managers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Aquatel provides utility metering solutions and heating/water cost-allocation services for apartment buildings, real estate developers, and housing companies. The company sells and rents water, thermal energy, and gas meters plus communication interfaces, and delivers annual meter reading, cost distribution, and heating cost allocation services backed by an online customer portal. Operations span Belgium, with product distribution also covering Benelux, France, and Germany.

Product overview

Aquatel offers a comprehensive suite of utility metering solutions for residential and commercial buildings, comprising three core product categories plus services. The heating cost allocation system (Répartiteurs de frais de chauffage) centers on the RFC 868 wireless heat cost allocator with dual-sensor technology. The thermal energy meter range includes the Supercal 531 (multifunctional), Supercal 739 (ultra-compact), Superstatic 789, and Superstatic 440 (both using fluidic oscillation for no-moving-part precision). Water meters span multiple technologies: single-jet (ETK-EAX/ETW-EAX, USF/USFI, DARF/DARFI), multi-jet (MJ-LFC, MTHI), volumetric (PRMVM), Woltmann axial turbine (MWNF/MWNCI), and ultrasonic (OCTAVE, Qalcosonic, LoRa). Gas meters include diaphragm-based models. Communication interfaces support M-Bus, Wireless M-Bus, MODbus, BACnet, LON, LoRaWAN, and impulse outputs for building management system integration. Aquatel complements its product portfolio with an online customer portal for consumption data access and meter reading/cost allocation services for apartment buildings across Belgium.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• RFC 868 Wireless Heat Cost Allocator Wireless M-Bus 868MHz heat cost allocator with dual temperature sensor technology for accurate radiator energy measurement. Distinguishes between heating mode and external heating sources, including solar influence filtering. Used for individual heating cost allocation in apartment buildings, compliant with EN 834:2013.
• Supercal 739 Ultra-Compact Thermal Energy Meter Ultra-compact thermal energy meter (calorie counter) with detachable integrator designed for residential applications. Features jet-single flow sensor, magnetic detection principle, and EEPROM data protection. Compliant with EN 1434 and MID 2004/22/CE.
• Supercal 531 Multifunctional Calculator Multifunctional calculator for heat, cold, and flow measurement. Supports solar installations up to 130°C and cooling installations down to -20°C. Offers multiple communication options including M-Bus, LON, RS232, Radio, and GSM, with BACnet protocol support for building automation integration.
• Superstatic 789 Thermal Energy Meter Compact thermal energy meter using fluidic oscillation principle without moving parts. Composite material construction for durability and corrosion resistance. Supports M-Bus, bidirectional radio, and Wireless M-Bus (OMS compatible).
• Superstatic 440 Static Energy Meter Static energy meter using fluidic oscillation technology with no moving parts for high precision and wear-free operation. Can be fully submerged (IP68) and combined with Supercal 531 for heat, cold, and combined hot-cold measurement.
• ETK-EAX/ETW-EAX Single-Jet Water Meter Single-jet velocity water meter for cold water (50°C) or hot water (90°C) with 360° orientable register. Supports communication via inductive pulse, M-Bus, Wireless M-Bus OMS 868MHz, or Sontex Supercom 433MHz radio. Compliant with EN 14154 and MID 2004/22/EC (MI-001).
• DARF/DARFI Water Meter Water meter for cold and hot water applications, part of Aquatel's comprehensive water meter portfolio.
• MJ-LFC/MJ-LFCI Multi-Jet Cold Water Meter Multi-jet water meter for cold water with enhanced accuracy and durability for various building applications.
• MWNF/MWNFI Woltmann Cold Water Meter Woltmann axial turbine water meter for cold water up to 30°C with removable mechanism and pulse emitter option. Suitable for larger diameter pipes (15mm to 300mm).
• MWNC/MWNCI Woltmann Hot Water Meter Woltmann axial turbine water meter for hot water up to 130°C. Features removable mechanism and optional pulse emitter for building management integration.
• OCTAVE High-Precision Ultrasonic Water Meter High-precision ultrasonic water meter with revolutionary accuracy for diameters 50-300mm. No moving parts, IP68 rated, bidirectional with alarm functions.
• Qalcosonic Flow 4 Ultrasonic Water Meter Ultrasonic flow meter for measuring hot and cold water consumption in residential, apartment, and industrial applications. No straight lengths required, available DN15 to DN100.
• USF/USFI Single-Jet Dry-Dial Water Meter Single-jet dry-dial water meter with vacuum-sealed register preventing condensation. Available in 3-wire bi-pulse version with magnetic shielding.
• PRMVM Volumetric Cold Water Meter Volumetric cold water meter with rotating piston for very low flow detection (from 0.5 liters/hour). Ideal for collective housing water billing.
• Ultrasonic LoRaWAN Water Meter Ultrasonic water meter with integrated LoRaWAN and Wireless M-Bus communication. Static measurement, IP68 rated, 16-year battery life, no straight sections required.
• MTHI Multi-Jet Hot Water Meter Multi-jet hot water meter for residential and commercial applications.
• Diaphragm Gas Meter Diaphragm gas meter measuring natural gas, city gas, propane, butane, and air. Four separate measurement chambers with plastic membranes. Conforms to CEE 71/31 and UNI-CIG 7897/7899 standards and OIML recommendations.
• Communication Interfaces for Building Management Integration Communication interfaces enabling meter data export in multiple configurations. Supports impulse, M-Bus, WM-Bus, MODbus protocols for building management system integration.
• Portail Aquatel - Online Customer Portal Online customer portal for property managers, owners, and tenants to access consumption data, invoices, intervention history, and account management. Features remote reading data visualization and document download.
• Meter Reading and Heating/Water Cost Allocation Service Meter reading and heating/water cost allocation service for apartment buildings. Includes installation, reading, cost distribution, and annual statement generation. Service available via 10-year rental contracts (with annual reading and 10-year warranty included) or one-time purchase with annual reading fees.

Quantifiable outcome

• 7% heating cost savings per degree reduction in temperature setting
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration11 records

Feature4 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Ista: One of Europe's largest submetering and heat cost allocation service companies. Directly comparable to Aquatel in serving multi-unit residential buildings with metering, reading, and cost allocation services, but at much greater scale and across more countries.
• Techem: Major European provider of heat cost allocation, water metering, and consumption-based billing for residential buildings. Closely comparable to Aquatel in core service model (submetering + reading + cost allocation), operating at substantially larger scale across multiple European countries.
• Minol Messtechnik: German submetering and heat cost allocation company. Directly comparable to Aquatel as a long-established European specialist in apartment-building heat/water metering and billing services.
• Brunata: Danish-based European submetering and heat cost allocation provider. Directly comparable to Aquatel in offering cost allocation, meter reading, and billing services for multi-unit residential buildings, with broader geographic footprint.
• Qundis: European specialist in heat cost allocators and submetering solutions for residential buildings. Directly comparable to Aquatel in manufacturing/distributing EN 834-compliant heat cost allocators and wireless meter reading systems (similar to RFC 868).
• Zenner International: German manufacturer and service provider of heat, water, and gas meters for residential submetering applications. Comparable to Aquatel as a European submetering specialist with both hardware manufacturing and reading/billing service capabilities.

Broad incumbents

• Sontex: Swiss manufacturer of heat cost allocators and meters whose products Aquatel resells (e.g., RFC 868, Supercal 739). Comparable as a peer in metering technology but operating as an upstream OEM/distributor rather than a local submetering service provider.
• Kamstrup: Danish manufacturer of smart heat, water, and electricity meters with ultrasonic and RF technology. Comparable to Aquatel's portfolio (e.g., OCTAVE/Qalcosonic ultrasonic meters) but operating as a major metering OEM rather than a local service provider.
• Diehl Metering: German manufacturer of heat, water, and gas meters (Hydrus, Sharky, etc.) with broad European submetering coverage. Comparable to Aquatel in meter categories and standards compliance, but at much larger scale.
• Itron: Global metering and smart infrastructure company with significant European submetering exposure. Comparable to Aquatel in offering residential heat/water meters with communication protocols, though Itron operates at global scale across utility and multi-unit segments.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/AquatelBelgium
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aquatelbelgium

Compliance10 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 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 aquatel