Of the 52 municipalities managed by the Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées conurbation community, the price is still very variable, while harmonization of prices is planned for 2030.
Do you pay more for your drinking water than your neighbor? At a time when household purchasing power is being undermined by soaring energy prices, the question is crucial. The harmonization of prices at €2 including tax/m3 was judiciously and gradually implemented by 2030 by the Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées urban community.
But six years from the deadline, in the 52 municipalities managed by the community, the price is still very variable, depending on whether you live in Aspin-en-Lavedan for the least expensive (€1.86 including tax/m3) or in Lugagnan for the highest (€3.17 including tax/m3).
A price difference depending on the management method
The difference in price is quite obvious, between municipalities which are under direct management (direct management of the service by the community) or in provision, and those which have delegated their public service of drinking water (and sanitation) to a private company.
With €1.97/m3, municipalities which take care of their services themselves are cheaper on average than those which have them managed by a specialized company (€2.27/m3). This is particularly the case for the villages of the Batsurgère valley, Tarbes (only €1.94 including tax/m3) and Ossun (€1.98 including tax/m3), which are well below the average for municipalities. of the urban area (€2.15 including tax/m3).
“We will ensure that the 37,000 subscribers are secure, at a reasonable price”
Be careful, however, “small municipalities whose water price is not very high are often those which have not made significant investments in their drinking water network”, warns Jean-Claude Piron, hence their interest in integrating the water and sanitation service of the Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées conurbation community. “In the next ten to fifteen years, we will ensure that the 37,000 subscribers are secure, at a reasonable price.”
Conversely, municipalities under public service delegation (DSP) such as Bordères-sur-l’Échez (€2.27 including tax/m3), Lourdes (€2.06 including tax/m3), Saint-Pé-de- Bigorre (€2.89 including tax/m3) and like those belonging to the intercommunal drinking water supply unions of the canton of Tarbes Sud (Allier, Barbazan-Debat, Bernac-Debat, Bernac-Dessus, Horgues, Momères, Odos, Saint-Martin, Salles-Adour, Vieille-Adour), Trois Vallées (Adé, Barlest, Barprès, Ger, Geu, Jarret, Juncalas, Les Angles, Loubajac, Poueyferré, Saint-Créac) and Cotes de Bourréac and Miramont (Bourréac , Escoubès-Pouts, Julos) are more expensive but often more “secure”: respectively €2.14, €2.26 and €2.46.
But the municipalities which integrate the water and sanitation service of the Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées agglomeration community see “their service prices drop by 36%, thanks to the group negotiations that we carry out on public service delegations” notes Jean mischievously -Claude Piron. “For her and even for us, it’s a win-win.”
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