The European Investment Bank has approved a €450 million financing package for Italian utility ACEA to upgrade water and wastewater infrastructure in the Lazio region, with a first €200 million tranche signed in Rome.
The funding will support ACEA’s 2027 to 2030 investment plan to improve water supply, treatment and distribution services, as well as wastewater management, across the areas it serves in Lazio, the EIB announced on Monday.
Planned work includes upgrading water networks, cutting water losses and digitalising parts of the system.
The programme also covers strengthening connections between parts of the network and developing ways to reuse water resources.
The deal is the 17th agreement between the EIB and ACEA since their first financing operation in 1999, bringing total EIB financing to about €2.6 billion.
Wider EIB lending to Italy’s water sector
Italy was the largest recipient of EIB water-sector financing in 2025, with €837 million backing projects expected to provide drinking water to 3.4 million people, improve sanitation services for 4.7 million and reduce flood risk for nearly 4 million, EIB Vice President Gelsomina Vigliotti stated.
The new agreement will help speed up upgrades to ACEA’s networks and plants, Pier Francesco Ragni, ACEA’s co-general manager, said.
