Making money with water –Quantum of solace

Finally, an enlightened and perverse mind has found the way to become shamefully rich in the water industry. After three months in the US, interviewing executives and analysts from the water industry, I begun wondering if there was anybody out there happy with what so many people call “the blue gold”.

Really, is there anybody getting rich, shamefully rich, with water? YES!

Dominic Greene, CEO of Greene & Co., will apparently provide water to the whole country of Bolivia, after having negotiated an increase of 100% in tariffs.

With water tariffs in Bolivia ranging between 2.01 and 7.28 Bolivianos/m3 (0.25 and 0.95 USD/m3, 2005 data) and average water use for domestic consumption of 55 litres/day (1987 data), Mr Green will rake up more than $55m, before tax, as we can assume he will not invest a single Boliviano in new infrastructures.

 Unfortunately for him, after having bribed the newly installed dictator with an aluminium case full of dollar bills, he will eventually be left, alone and without water, in the Andean highlands by an agent on Her Majesty’s Secret Service, James Bond. Mr Green will eventually be executed by his former partners.

PS James Bond may be a fictional character, but Bolivian tariffs and consumption data I used are not. Cfr. www.earthtrends.org/gsearch.php?va=cp&kw=bolivia&theme=0 and www.sisab.gov.bo/sisab2/sisab/documentos/INDICADORES2005.pdf