State fund takes control of water company

The Mozambican Fund for Investment and Facilities for Water Supply (Fipag) has formally taken control of water company Águas de Moçambique (AdM) following the acquisition of 73 percent of the company owned by Portuguese group Águas de Portugal, which had managed the Mozambican water company for the last 12 years. On 28 December, 2010, Fipag and Águas de Portugal Internacional (AdPI), signed an agreement to transfer the Portuguese company’s shares to Fipag and set a transition period of three months, which is due to end on 31 March, for the legal formalities of the process of buying and selling the shares.

Águas de Moçambique is a consortium made up of Águas de Portugal Internacional, the majority shareholder, and Mozambique’s Mazi, which in 1999 signed a contract with Fipag for exploration of the water supply system in Maputo for a 15-year period.
Fipag also said that the acquisition of ADP’s shares in Águas de Moçambique was part of the Mozambican government’s aim to develop a robust and sustainable national water industry and to promote national qualified national operators. (macauhub)