By Gu Shuzhong, Li Weiming & Wang Yining, Research Team on “China’s Water Treatment”, Research Institute of Resources and Environment Policies

Research Report No. 49, 2018 (Total. 5324) 2018-3-16

Abstract: It was in the 1990s that China began to apply PPP model in water treatment, especially in urban water-related affairs. Since the turn of the new century, the application of PPP model has made a swift progress, which has caught the eye of the whole society. After 2009 such a progress witnessed a slight slowdown, but a number of supportive policies issued by the government have enabled it to gain new momentum to make further development. PPP model has made a sea of pilot practice in many areas beyond traditional ones such as major water conservancy projects, water environment treatment projects and farmland water conservancy projects among others. Currently, there are still many problems in spite of the progress made in applying PPP model in water treatment. To further improve and regulate the policy system for the application of PPP model in water treatment, efforts need to be made to flesh out the overall planning of water treatment and promote the quality of PPP projects; enhance the relevant legislation of the application of PPP model in water treatment and improve its market regulation system; consummate the preferential policy system and enhance the sustainability and profitability of cash flow of PPP’s application in water treatment projects; amplify specialized supervision system and enforce the supervision over the PPP application in water treatment; cultivate specialized water treatment operating entities and cross-regional water treatment groups; and intensify the risk prevention and control of the application of PPP model in water treatment.

Key words: water treatment, PPP model, urban water-related affairs