Romania lost more than 565 million cubic meters of drinking water from public distribution networks in 2024, according to official data submitted to the European Commission under Directive (EU) 2020/2184 on drinking water. In practical terms, nearly half (around 50%) of the water introduced into the system never ends up being billed to consumers.

The information comes from a standardized set of technical data reported by Romanian authorities and covers the activity of 47 large regional water operators.

This picture reflects a national average that conceals major regional disparities. While much of Romania’s water infrastructure remains vulnerable due to its age and chronic underfunding, Bucharest operates in a markedly different context, shaped by sustained investment, accelerated digitalization, and a capacity for intervention well above the national average—particularly after 2000, when the current concession began.

Ten-times faster interventions and sharply reduced losses

According to operational indicators reported for 2024:

• The average response time for breakdowns fell dramatically, from 102.7 hours to 10.7 hours.
• The number of incidents involving water losses dropped from 18,419 (in 2000) to 4,949 (in 2024).
• Drinking water losses were reduced from 252 million m³ in 2000 to 39.18 million m³ in 2024.
• Raw water consumption declined from 599.5 million m³ in 2000 to 192.6 million m³ in 2024.
• Specific energy consumption fell from 0.659 kWh/m³ to 0.231 kWh/m³, while system efficiency increased from 50.39% to 78.98%.

Investments made by Apa Nova (2000–2024)

Between 2000 and 2024, the operator reported nearly €796 million invested in infrastructure:

• 258.7 km of drinking water network expansion
• 251.1 km of sewer network expansion
• 548 km of pipelines rehabilitated and modernized

In 2024 alone:

• 23.38 km of drinking water pipes were rehabilitated across all sectors of the capital, and 1,508 service connections were replaced.
• 11.02 km of sewer network were modernized, based on criteria such as age, frequency of failures, and degree of clogging.

Digitalization and real-time control

Apa Nova expanded SCADA systems in critical areas of the network, enabling real-time monitoring and automatic alerts for anomalies. At the same time, the GIS platform was integrated with intervention modules, allowing failures to be located quickly and field teams to receive the optimal route directly on their tablets.

According to the operator, the combination of infrastructure investment and digitalization has reduced losses, significantly shortened response times, and improved the system’s energy efficiency.

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