Lot 3 of Cedae is sold for R$2.2 billion by Saab Participações

The auction of lot 3 of the State Water and Sewage Company of Rio de Janeiro (Cedae) took place this Wednesday, at 2 pm, at B3. Saab Participações won the block for R$ 2.201 billion — a 90% premium.

The event had two bidders. The winning proposal exceeded the bidder’s value by 20%, stipulated necessary to be considered the winner by the concession notice. The company that lost was the Aegea Consortium, which offered R$ 1,572 billion for the lot.

The lot 3 project foresees R$ 4.7 billion in investments to universalize sanitation services in the 21 municipalities that participate in the block, with around 2.7 million people benefited, according to the government of Rio.

The tender for the last of the 4 lots had a minimum grant value of R$ 1.16 billion, with a total of R$ 1.5 billion of variable grant for municipalities in 35 years. In addition, R$ 13.6 billion in investments in operation and maintenance are also planned over the 35-year contract.

Lot 3 went on sale in April this year, but was left with no interested parties — the only one during the event. At the time, the State of Rio de Janeiro raised R$ 22.7 billion for three of the four blocks, with premiums that reached up to 187% on the initial bid.

After not obtaining proposals with lot 3, the government of Rio de Janeiro studied a new public notice for another attempt to grant the block, this time with 21 participating municipalities instead of seven, as occurred in the first attempt.

The auction this Wednesday (29) was attended by the governor of Rio de Janeiro, Cláudio Castro, and the minister of Regional Development, Rogério Marinho.

First phase

In the first phase of Cedae’s sanitation concession, which took place on April 30, the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) divided the auction into four blocks, which added up to a minimum grant of R$ 10.6 billion to be paid to the states and municipalities that own the concessions.

Company Aegea, defeated in the auction for lot 3 this Wednesday, won two blocks at the time, while Iguá Saneamento took one.

The total amount raised in the first session was R$ 22.7 billion by the three of the four blocks. The expectation is that the funds raised will speed up access to treated water and sewage for almost 13 million people in up to 12 years.

According to the new sanitation framework, the deadline for the universalization of the network is until 2033.