French-owned SAUR was established in 1933 and became a subsidiary of the Bouygues Group in 1984. The company provides water to almost 31 million people throughout the world – 6 million consumers are served in France. France has given the world wonderful wine and bread – and it has also developed the model of water privatization that is pushed by the World Bank, the European Union and many aid agencies. SAUR has managed to hold a dominant role in French-speaking West Africa, where it is involved in several controversial water privatization projects.

SAUR International, the international holding company of SAUR, claims to serve a total of 45 million people in energy and water services combined. This part of the group was created in 1995 in order to expand to new markets and reap the benefits from increased World Bank funding funneled to private water utilities. Electricite de France, another major French (energy) corporation that invests heavily in energy internationally and holds a monopoly on the French energy market, bought a 23% share in SAUR international in 1995 through a subsidiary configuration.

Read the Corporate Profile on SAUR.