KOCHI: In a major shift in the city’s water management, Paris-headquartered SUEZ has begun operations in Kochi, taking over the operation and maintenance of drinking water supply across all wards of Kochi corporation for the next 10 years.
Entrusted by the Kerala Water Authority (KWA), the multinational firm will now oversee all pump houses within the corporation limits and exclusively handle water distribution, leak detection, repairs and maintenance. The formal handover, backed by Rs 1,141.28 crore in funding from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), was completed on December 29. After two months of field surveys and asset mapping, SUEZ commenced full-fledged operations on Friday. The project falls under the ADB-funded Kerala Urban Water Services Improvement Project, for which SUEZ emerged as the successful bidder in June 2025.
While the agreement was signed in June, financial closure was achieved in December, following which the company began preparatory work. Kochi’s water infrastructure, much of it dating back to the 1940s, has long been plagued by frequent pipe bursts and leaks, often disrupting supply and raising health concerns. The corporation area has around 1,400 km of pipeline network and distributes nearly 210 million litres per day (MLD).
Under the contract, SUEZ will focus on operation and maintenance during the first year. From the second year onwards, large-scale infrastructure upgrades will begin. “As per the agreement, around 740 km of ageing and low-capacity pipelines will be replaced over the next seven years. This year will focus on studies, surveys, and design optimisation.
Replacement work will be carried out zonally from year two to seven,” a senior KWA official said.Officials clarified that revenue collection and grievance redressal will continue to be handled directly by KWA. “The current move is aimed at bringing all outsourced operational work under a single agency to improve efficiency,” the official added.
However, the move has sparked strong opposition from employee unions. The AITUC-affiliated KWA employees’ union has launched a day-and-night protest in front of the chief engineer’s office. AITUC general secretary R Prasad alleged that handing over drinking water management to a multinational company poses risks to quality and could eventually lead to tariff hikes. Despite the protests, the authorities maintained that the public-private partnership model is designed to modernise Kochi’s fragile water network and ensure long-term sustainability.