It is everywhere and still flows freely through our taps, but at what cost? Beneath our feet, kilometers of pipes are dying, water towers are aging and groundwater is struggling to remain drinkable. Water, this essential good, has always been inexpensive in France. In Indre, as elsewhere, the time has now come to catch up: the price of a cubic meter of water will rise every year, sometimes dizzyingly.
“We must replace 752 km of pipes at €200 excluding VAT per linear meter”
A fatality? Not really. The reasons are clear: dilapidated infrastructure, water leaks, reinforced drinking standards, diffuse pollution, rising energy costs and above all, falling consumption while investments explode. This poisoned cocktail is the user who will have to swallow it.
Infrastructures running out of steam
In Indre, the figures speak for themselves. “Our networks are sixty years old”summarizes Michel Pirot, president of the Couarde water union, which serves twenty municipalities. “We need to replace 752 km of pipes at €200 excluding VAT per linear meter and just for the water security phase from 2025, it will cost us €3 million.” A situation common to the entire department, where the majority of networks date from the 1950s-1970s and are now reaching the end of their life.
Renewal is part of the equation. But we also need to modernize infrastructure, secure supplies and meet environmental requirements. The unions must increase the number of construction sites, without substantial assistance for the pipelines: “For us, it’s €1 million worth of work each year, and this will have to be financed through increases of 6 to 10% annually. This is the only solution to the equation”explains Bruno Taillandier, president of the Boischaut Nord water union, which manages more than 840 km of networks in 22 municipalities.
An untenable equation
The increase in investment coincides with a fall in consumption. In Indre, as elsewhere in France, users have reduced their use of water, encouraged by the latest droughts. If this decline – of the order of 3 to 4% – is beneficial for resources, it weakens the economic model of water services. In fact, 80% of revenues are based on the volumes consumed, while the fixed part of the subscription remains marginal. A vicious circle.
“The drop in consumption poses a real problem”deplores Jean-Marie Fauconnier, president of the La Grave union, which brings together Argenton-sur-Creuse and its surroundings. “Our revenues are decreasing, but our expenses are increasing, particularly with the price of energy and materials. To balance, we will have no choice but to increase prices. »
Differentiated increases
Future increases will be inevitable, but their magnitude will vary between unions. Not all communities anticipated in the same way. “Some have already integrated investments into their prices in recent years, others less”notes Denis Charpentier, project manager at the DDT (Departmental Directorate of Territories) of Indre. Result: price gaps which risk widening between territories. In 2024, it recorded an average price per m³ of €2.354, or 4.62% more than the previous year. But, concretely, we find the highest prices in communities that have delegated water management to companies such as Suez (6 municipalities) and Saur (16). In 2024, the average price per m³ for the first was €2.526 and €2.591 for the second.
The puzzle of solutions
At the same time, unions are putting measures in place to make the bill less unfair. In 2025, Boischaut Nord plans progressive pricing by consumption bracket: “The more we consume, the more we pay, except for farmers, who need water for their activity”specifies Bruno Taillandier.
Either way, the price of water will continue to rise. A development that elected officials will have to explain educationally, because for many users, water, invisible and yet so precious, is still perceived as their due. But this luxury, so long undervalued, has a cost, and we will have to bear it.
