USTDA Supports Water Efficiency Service Improvement in Northern Brazil

(USTDA) Brasilia, BRAZIL – Today, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) awarded a $485,173 grant to Aguas do Amazonas, S.A. (ADA) for a Water Efficiency Improvement Project feasibility study. The grant was signed at the U.S. Embassy in Brasilia, by the company’s CEO Vicente Ferreira Linhares Júnior and U.S. Ambassador to Brazil Thomas A. Shannon, and was witnessed by USTDA Country Manager Gabrielle Mandel and Ícaro Mello Dugaich of ADA.

The USTDA grant will fund a feasibility study to improve water delivery service and reduce non-revenue water loss in the city of Manaus. The study will identify system deficiencies including leakages, losses due to fraud and energy inefficiencies, and make recommendations for both short-term and long-term system improvements. ADA is the largest water and sanitation services private concessionaire in Brazil, producing 17 million cubic meters of water a month to serve almost 435,000 customers.

In addition to helping ADA to maximize system efficiency with respect to its water supply network, the project is expected to generate opportunities of interest to U.S. providers of various water management-related goods and services. This will include the need for metering, pumping and leak detection technologies, for systems management and integration services, and for various forms of IT hardware and software.

"This project represents a significant opportunity for collaboration between Brazilian and U.S. firms," commented USTDA Director Leocadia I. Zak, adding, "U.S. firms have considerable expertise in this area, and USTDA is pleased to partner with ADA on this important project."

ADA has identified Halcrow, Inc. (Denver, CO) as the U.S. contractor for the feasibility study, which will be cost-shared between USTDA and Halcrow.