Sacyr has been awarded a water cycle concession in the region of Antofagasta (Chile), which will involve an initial investment of €260 million, with a duration of 35 years. This is the largest water reuse project in Latin America, which involves the construction of a wastewater treatment plant for subsequent commercialisation.

The main function of the project will be to capture pre-treated wastewater from the current Antofagasta plant, operated by Sacyr Agua, and take it to the Salar del Carmen area, where the new treatment plant will be located, which will have a final capacity of 900 litres per second.

The current plant supplies treated, ultrapure and industrial wastewater, while the future project, which will focus on reuse water for mining, will substantially improve regional sustainability indices and generate more than 500 jobs in the area.

It is planned that the pre-treated water will be transferred along 16 kilometers to the Salar del Carmen sector, including a 5.4-kilometer stretch in the urban area that will be executed by microtunneling. An additional 24 kilometers will be built to La Negra and another 24 kilometers to Mantos Blancos.

This concession is the second one won by Sacyr this year, after the extension of Rutas del Este in Paraguay, which confirms the Group’s rhythm of three or four awards per year. Chile has been one of Sacyr’s main markets for decades, where in 2024 it generated EBITDA of €225 million, behind only Colombia and Italy, and well above Spain (€131 million). On 30 September, Sacyr announced its Q1 results, where, although EBITDA fell by 12%, operating cash flow generation rose by 8% to €240m. During the remainder of the year, the Group should formalise the creation of Voreantis, a vehicle that will bring together its most mature concessions, with the intention of placing a minority stake in one or a few investment funds.