Specialist advisory for environmental service operators in Spain

Spain’s water and environment sector brings together approximately 2,825 active companies and employs more than 48,700 Social Security-registered workers, with aggregate revenues of around €9.3 billion and a gross margin of 22.8% — above that of many service sectors. Spain’s presence in the European market is significant: the sector commands a 20.9% share of EU activity, driven by the leading position of major domestic concessionaires in water and waste markets across France, the United Kingdom and Latin America. That international leadership coexists with growing domestic regulatory pressure from Law 7/2022 on waste and contaminated land and from the objectives of the Water Framework Directive.

Law 7/2022 raises traceability, recycling and producer responsibility standards, generating compliance costs that require a strategic review of the business model for many operators. At the same time, the National Purification Plan and European commitments on reclaimed water reuse are driving substantial infrastructure investment that must be financed through a combination of tariffs, grants and private capital. Next Generation EU funds — which allocate over €3 billion to Spain’s water cycle — and pressure from local authorities to improve efficiency have accelerated public-private partnership processes, operator consolidation and the renewal of longstanding concessions.

At BMC we advise integrated water cycle concessionaires, waste treatment and recovery companies, soil decontamination plant operators and circular economy project promoters on all their legal and financial needs. Our administrative law and public procurement practice accompanies clients in the tendering, negotiation and management of concessions with local and regional authorities, including the economic-financial rebalancing mechanisms triggered by unforeseen regulatory changes. We also manage compliance with environmental liability regulations and advise on the sizing and structuring of mandatory financial guarantees under Law 26/2007.

The ESG agenda and sustainable finance are areas of growing strategic importance for operators in this sector. We support clients in issuing green bonds and water bonds, aligning with the EU Taxonomy for Sustainable Activities — which explicitly recognises water management and the circular economy as environmentally sustainable activities — and preparing sustainability reports under CSRD/GRI standards. This work is complemented by management of European and national grants for environmental innovation projects, sector-specific tax planning and legal assistance in disputes arising from environmental damage, administrative claims or contractual conflicts with public bodies.