Water supply companies in the Spanish Levante (1840–1939)

Abstract

The goal of this chapter is to present the group of private drinking water supply companies that emerged in the Levante region of Spain during the final decades of the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century. Additionally, the work analyses the role these entities played in the urban modernisation process and describes some of their characteristics. The company Aguas Potables y Mejoras de Valencia, which over the years became part of the Aguas de Barcelona group, was especially important. A variety of factors explain the range of enterprises that operated in this region. Firstly, the Water Laws of 1866 and 1879 ratified the powers of municipal councils and spurred the granting of concessions to private companies for the supply of water to population centres. Secondly, local and foreign developers were attracted to an economic activity that was very innovative at that time.