Veolia

On December 14, 1853, a water company named Compagnie Générale des Eaux (CGE) was created by an Imperial decree of Napoleon III. In 1853, CGE obtained a concession in order to supply water to the public in Lyon, serving in this capacity for over a hundred years. In 1860, it obtained a 50-year concession with the City of Paris.^[4]

For a hundred years, Compagnie Générale des Eaux remained largely focused on the water sector. However, following the appointment of Guy Dejouany as CEO in 1976, CGE extended its activities into other sectors with a series of takeovers. Beginning in 1980, CGE began diversifying its operations from water into waste management, energy, transport services, and construction and property. It acquired the "Compagnie Générale d'Entreprises Automobiles" (CGEA), specialized in industrial vehicles, which was later divided into two branches: Connex and Onyx Environnement. CGE then acquired the "Compagnie Générale de Chauffe", and later the Montenay group. The Energy Services division these companies became part of was later (1998) renamed "Dalkia".

CGE's expansion into communication commenced with the establishment of Canal+ in 1983, the first Pay-TV channel in France. This expansion was accelerated after Jean-Marie Messier succeeded Guy Dejouany on June 27, 1996. In 1996, CGE created Cegetel to take advantage of the 1998 deregulation of the French telecommunications market, accelerating the move into the media sector which would culminate in the 2000 demerger into Vivendi Universal and Vivendi Environnement.

 

In 1998, Compagnie Générale des Eaux changed its name to Vivendi, and sold off its property and construction divisions the following year.

Vivendi went on to list on the New York Stock Exchange (as "V"), and in December, announced a major merger with Canal+ and Seagram, the owner of Universal Studios film company, to become Vivendi Universal and now named Vivendi.

In July 2000, Vivendi spun off the remaining water and waste companies into Vivendi Environnement (IPO in Paris in July 2000 and in New York in October 2001), later (2003) renamed Veolia Environnement.

In 2003, Vivendi Environnement became Veolia Environnement. In 2005, the name “Veolia” was established as an umbrella brand for all of the Group’s divisions (water, environmental services, energy services and transport) and a new logo was created.^[4]

In November 2009, Antoine Frérot has become the Chairman and the CEO of the Group after succeeding Henri Proglio who has been appointed CEO of Électricité de France. The change has been part of a huge politico-financial scandal in France^[5][6] as Proglio kept executive positions - and subsequent salary - in both companies until public criticism forced him to give up his Veolia revenues.

Its Veolia Water division remains the largest private operator of water services in the world.

In March 2011 the company announce the birth of Veolia Transdev, the result of the combination of its transport subsidiary Veolia Transport with Transdev, a subsidiary of Caisse des Dépôts. Veolia Transdev is the world's private-sector leader in sustainable mobility with more than 110,000 employees in 28 countries.^[7]

In July 2011, amid disappointing financial results, the company announced the launch of new restructuring plans and redeployment of assets and businesses.^[8] In December 2011, Veolia announced a €5bn divestment program over 2012-2013. ^[9] The company would comprise only three divisions (Water, Environmental Services and Energy Services). The transport businesses Veolia Transdev would be divested.

Veolia Water is the world leader in water services. It handles water and wastewater services for clients in the public sector and in various industries. It also creates and constructs the required technology and infrastructure. In 2009, Veolia Water recorded revenue of €12.56 billion and employed 95,789 people. The Water division operates in 66 countries around the world.^[10]

Veolia Environmental Services is second in the world in waste management services. In addition to environmental and logistics services, it treats and converts hazardous and non-hazardous waste. The goal: decrease pollutants in waste to lessen its environmental effects, and promote waste recycling and recovery. The company employs 85,600 staff in 33 countries and had 2009 revenues recorded at €9.1 billion.^[11]

Veolia Energy (Dalkia) strives to maximise facilities’ energy and environmental efficiency. Its services include maintaining and managing heating and cooling systems, making plants more energy efficient, and selecting the most adapted energies. In 2009, Dalkia had €7.1 billion in revenue and employed 52,577 employees in 42 countries, principally in Europe.^[12]

Veolia Energy (North America) is the largest operator and developer of efficient district energy (heating, cooling and cogeneration) systems in North America, located in ten major U.S. cities. It also provides facility operations, energy management, and advisory services. Until February 2011, this division operated under the Trigen Energy brand name.^[13][14]

Veolia Transdev was formed in 2011 from a merger of Veolia Transport with Transdev, a subsidiary of Caisse des Dépôts.^[7] Before the merger, Veolia Transport recorded revenues of €5.86 billion in 2009. It employed 77,591 people across 27 countries in Europe, North America and Asia. It worked with public authorities under public-private partnerships to manage public transit systems (buses, trains, metros, ferries, etc.).^[15] On December 6, 2011 Veolia Environment, seeking to reduce debt and focus on its core businesses of water, waste and energy, announced that it will eventually sell its share in Veolia Transdev, within a two-year time frame, by when its own activities will have been reorganized. After this announcement, the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations, for its part, officially reiterated its commitment to Veolia Transdev and its continued support as a shareholder to the group's development.^[16]

Veolia Environnement is established in 77 countries, with employees across the globe:

• France: 32%
• Europe (not including France): 35%
• Asia-Pacific: 10%
• North America: 9%
• Africa / Middle East: 7%
• South America: 7%^[17]

Veolia Environnement has 2,573 subsidiaries around the world.^[18]

On May 4, 2009, a Veolia Environmental Service's plant in West Carrollton, Ohio exploded. The blast leveled two buildings on the property which were a laboratory and a building that had several 200,000 gallon chemical tanks. This particular plant handles fuel blending among other services. Two workers at the plant were injured in the blast.^[19] The explosion caused $50 million in damage to the plant itself. More than a dozen homes up to a mile radius from the blast were also damaged due to the explosion.

At September 30, 2010 shares in Veolia Environnement were held as follows: 9.5% by Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations (primary shareholder), followed by Groupe Industriel Marcel Dassault (5.9%), Groupama (5.6%), Velo Investissement (5%) and Électricité de France (3.9%). Individual shareholders accounted for a further 7.7% of shares, employees of the company 1.6%, treasury stock 3% and other institutional investors the remaining 57.8%.^[20]

Veolia issued two profit warnings in 2011 and announced plans to quit half of the 77 countries where it does business. It launched a €5bn ($6.4m) fire sale of assets. The company and its top executives were facing the prospect of a US class-action lawsuit in January 2012 over allegations that they made “misleading” statements between 2007 and 2011 about its financial well-being. The company, which was described as "struggling" by the Financial Times, said that a complaint had been filed against it in New York for violation of US federal securities laws. Veolia's shares were the worst performer on France’s CAC 40 index in 2011, falling 60%.^[21]

The following is a summary of data (in millions of euros):^{[1][22][23][24]}

Data for Veolia Environnment, as listed on the New York Stock Exchange.^[25]

• Market capitalisation on December 31, 2010: $15.27 billion

On the Paris Bourse (the Paris stock exchange), Veolia Environnement is part of the CAC 40 index of shares.

• Number of shares outstanding on December 31, 2009: 493,630,374
• Market capitalisation on December 31, 2009: €11.4 billion

The company’s sustainable development activities are diverse. Because it operates in four sectors with a huge potential impact on the environment, both the risks and opportunities presented by sustainable development activities are substantial. The company’s sustainability efforts are furthered by its Foundation and Institute which emphasize innovation and research.^[26]

The Veolia Environnement Foundation supports non-profit activities related to sustainable development, professional continuous development and the protection of the environment in France and overseas. The Foundation supports projects through financial aid and voluntary services provided by its employees. It also supports emergency relief operations in collaboration with humanitarian organisations.^[27]

Following the earthquake in Haiti in January 2010, the Veolia Foundation dispatched 30 tons of emergency supplies (mainly water treatment units) via French Red Cross air transportation. The Foundation also sent Veolia technical experts to provide water to the disaster’s victims.^[28]

The Institut Veolia Environnement was created in 2001 to provide insights into major global challenges such as climate change, urbanisation and various economic, social and cultural issues related to the environment. The institute is built around a committee that brings together 7 experts and an international network of researchers and experts. Its activities include organising conferences and publishing articles and reports.^[29]

Veolia has been criticized for its involvement in the Jerusalem Light Rail, whose construction started in 2002; operations started in 2011. Critics argue that the railway stretches into the occupied East Jerusalem and to Israeli settlements regarded as illegal by the international community. In April 2010 the United Nations Human Rights Council declared the tramway and its operation to be illegal. The resolution was passed 44 to 1, with the UK, France and all the EU members of the Council voting in favour.^[30].

Veolia has a stake in the CityPass consortium that holds the concession, and is also involved in the rail's operation. The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign has been active against Veolia, principally in Europe.^[31] The Russell Tribunal on Palestine, at its London session of November 2010, considered Veolia's role in the Jerusalem Light Rail and found it to be illegal.^[32]

Veolia in September 2009 agreed to sell part of its share in the project to the Dan Bus Company for $15–20 million.^[33] The sale was however unsuccessful, and Veolia agreed in October 2010 to sell its stake to Egged instead. As a result, Dan sued Veolia.^[34] As of December 2011, the sale to Egged was reported to have been held up by the Israeli state; the press reported that Veolia was exiting Israel altogether as a result of political pressures from the BDS movement.^[35] Egged will however need Veolia's expertise for at least five years to run the light rail successfully.

Veolia's loss of waste management tenders in the UK, including a £485 million contract tendered by the West London Waste Authority in December 2011, covering 1.4 million inhabitants of the London boroughs of Brent, Ealing, Harrow, Hillingdon, Hounslow and Richmond-upon-Thames, was also blamed on the Jerusalem light rail and Tovlan landfill business in the West Bank.^{[citation needed]} In February 2011 the East London council of Tower Hamlet voted to review its position with Veolia and place no further contracts with it, after claiming that Veolia's work for the Israeli government assisted the "continued oppression of the Palestinian people".^[36]

As of December 31, 2009, the Group’s research and development investments reached €89.8 million (€92.1 million in 2008, €84.6 million in 2007).^{[citation needed]}

The Research and Innovation division includes 850 experts and supports around 200 scientific partnerships with private and public organisations. The division focuses on four main issues:

• Manage and preserve natural resources
• Control impacts on natural environments
• Care for health and living environments
• Develop alternative sources of energy^[37]

Veolia Environnement’s R&I division has determined 9 main development programmes through which a number of research projects are managed:

• Waste collection, sorting, and beneficial re-use
• Sustainable city and building management
• Energy efficiency
• Transport
• Environmental and health standards
• New activities
• Bioresources
• Drinking water
• Waste water^[38]

To boost and accelerate the innovation process, Veolia Environnement has established the Veolia Innovation Accelerator initiative.^[39] This is a programme for the identification and support of the best technologies (also called “cleantechs”) within the most innovative start-up companies in the industry.

• Water privatization
• Distributed generation

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