Nestled in the heart of Latvia, the new sewer pumping station at Daugavgrīvas Street 101 stands as a beacon of progress. With its advanced technology, it promises to revolutionize the city's water management and promote sustainability.

In 2023 alone, the pumping station managed almost 25 million cubic metres of sewage. This is the equivalent of 413 796 tank wagons, which would make a train spanning from Norway to Gibraltar. For residents like Inese Neļķe, a board member of the Berģinieki neighbourhood association, the impact hits close to home. “For me, it’s important what kind of environment I leave after myself, regardless of whether I stay here in Berģi in the future, or whether my children will live here,” she says. “What matters to me is what I leave behind.”

The new pumping station represents just one of the many transformative projects underway in Riga's water management system. Driving this change is the largest water company in the Baltic states, SIA Rīgas ūdens. Its goal is to enhance Riga’s vital water infrastructure by expanding the water supply and sewer system, increasing water production, and rehabilitating sewer networks and water supply pipelines. The European Investment Bank is supporting the company’s efforts with a €60 million loan, signed in June 2022.

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Better water supply and treatment for Riga

Riga is home to one-third of Latvia’s population. As its industries, agriculture, and population grow, this creates pressure on its water management system.

That is why SIA Rīgas ūdens has put in motion an ambitious plan to boost the city’s water infrastructure. This plan involves:

• installation of extensive networks of new sewer and water pipes
• integrating sewer pumping stations in districts such as Berģi, Imanta and Beberbeķi
• rehabilitation of the wells in the Remberģi aquifer, increasing productivity at the pumping station to 700 cubic metres per hour
• restoration of sewers and water supply pipelines, ensuring continuity and reliability of the systems
• finalisation of a new sewage pumping station, renovation of sewers using non-destructive methods, and the renewal of water supply pipelines in critical areas
• reconstruction and extension work on the Daugavgrīva wastewater treatment plant.

We managed to create one of the most modern and powerful sewage systems in the Baltics,” says Agnese Ozolkāja, a board member at SIA Rīgas ūdens. “Thanks to our work, 98% of Riga’s people have access to the centralised system, and we are taking care of wastewater collection for about 96.5% of the service area population in Riga and its surroundings."

The company is working on improving the water extraction point from the lake Mazais Baltezers that manages recharge of the Baltezers aquifer by infiltration pond cascade. There also further construction efforts in districts like Teika and Ziepniekkalns, where substantial progress has been made in laying down new sewer and water pipelines.

Supporting Latvia’s progress

Revamping a city's water management system is tough. It involves dealing with complex infrastructure and old pipes. It mustn’t impact daily life in the city. But another important aspect is to ensure financial support for the project’s successful completion.

SIA Rīgas ūdens extended the sewer lines by more than 41 kilometres and expanded the sewer network by 7.7 kilometres.

Thanks to the European Investment Bank’s loan, SIA Rīgas ūdens will be able to continue to renew and modernise its water management infrastructure.

“The loan represents 50% of the total project cost and it allowed the company to accelerate and complete the implementation more efficiently,” says Marina Ismaila, a senior public sector banker at the European Investment Bank, who worked on this deal.

Cleaner water, better life

When neighbourhoods are linked to the city’s utility networks, residents can enjoy high-quality water and sanitation, along with a more secure and cleaner environment. This also reduces water consumption and leaks in the future.

The new station will also help reduce 300,000 m3 in annual water consumption, which is half of the volume of Lake Ķīšezers, one of the largest lakes in Riga.

"Water and wastewater systems bring unseen benefits that aren't fully noticed,” says Daphne Voss, a senior water engineer at the European Investment Bank. “These include saving money on public health, keeping the environment cleaner, and cutting down on greenhouse gases by treating wastewater better.”

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