Sabesp

State-owned water company for the state of Sao Paulo, deemed to be the world's largest water company (as opposed to group of companies), with 25m customers. It is a model of management and operational efficiency.

In 2001 a minority of Sabesp's shares were floated on the New York Stock Exchange.

It has criticised the state and federal governments for restricting its access to credit, despite its creditworthiness.

Its financial (not operating) performance was badly affected by the combination of currency devaluation and high interest rates following the 1998 crisis. It managed to timely repay its debt within the first four monthsof the year, but had to axe its workforce due to the World Bank's refusal to renegotiate its obligations.

(See Stockholm & LatAm papers)

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