General Water of China Honored 2010 Frost & Sullivan Excellence in Growth Award

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Nov 24, 2010, 12:30 ET

SHANGHAI, Nov. 24, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2010 Frost & Sullivan Excellence in Growth Award in the Chinese water industry is presented to General Water of China Co., Ltd. (hereafter 'General Water of China' or 'GWC') for its continuous contribution to sustainable development, growth excellence and leadership, promising restructuring process, strategic development direction, and environmental compliance and social responsibility.

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With the rapid development of local economy as well as rising industrialization and urbanization rates, China is facing the dual problems of water scarcity and pollution. Besides, the water resources are distributed unevenly and efficiency of water utilization is still at a lower level when compared with developed countries. Therefore, the Chinese water industry has captured the greatest attention of the government over the years. The 12th Five-year Plan is likely to set restrictions on the concentration of ammonia nitrogen. Increase in reduction of chemical oxygen on demand (COD) is anticipated with the inclusion of rural areas in the total volume control index. The Plan will demonstrate targets in detail to make them more feasible. During the 12th Five-year Plan period, the draft plan has set goals for water industry that include network for treatment of 200 thousand tons of additional sewage, increasing sewage disposal capacity by 90 million tons, capacity upgrade of 50 million tons for sewage treatment, and new facilities for treatment of 47 thousand tons of sludge.

The central government is placing increasing emphasis on environmental protection. Investment on environmental protection during the 11th Five-Year Plan period (2006-2010) in China was around at about RMB1.53 trillion, accounting for 1.35 percent of GDP in this period. This investment is predicted to double in the 12th Five-Year Plan period (2011-2015) and in the meantime accounting for 1.5 percent in the country's GDP. Thus, 2010 becomes a critical milestone as the last year for the 11th Five-year Plan and the planning year for the 12th Five-year Plan.

Frost & Sullivan estimates the water and wastewater treatment market in China to grow at an average annual growth rate of 15 percent to 17 percent from 2010 to 2015, which is two times the GDP growth rate. Government support at all levels, stringent implementation of regulations pertaining to water and wastewater, and rising demand from downstream applications such as are the major factors driving the market.

GWC is one of the leading participants in the Chinese water industry. The company has positioned itself as a comprehensive service provider. It is specialized in providing engineering solution, equipment manufacture integration, operation management service, and technical service, through its 16 wholly owned or holding subsidiaries and one share-holding subsidiary. Among these subsidiaries, 13 are project companies and four are professional companies.

China Energy Conservation & Environmental Protection Group (CECEP) and Shanghai Industrial Holdings Limited (SIHL) established GWC jointly in November, 2003. Supported by its two powerful parent companies, General Water of China has solid capital background and close relationships with governments, which enabled it to realize sustainable growth in the past. The trend is likely to continue for the forecast period as well. The company also has set its short-term and long-term goals in China's water industry. It aims to possess the best assets and top-level competitiveness in the next three years. As a long-term goal, it will implement its integration strategy from all aspects, including geographic integration, value chain integration, integration of relevant elements, and finally group integration. Under the leadership and management of Mr. Huang Weihua, GM of General Water of China, the company is currently enhancing its strategic competitiveness in water supply, equipment, engineering, sludge treatment, and wastewater treatment. Moreover, it is looking for strategic cooperation opportunities in some emerging growth points, such as desalination, watershed recovery, and water reclamations. The company already has several experimental bases in Qingdao, Shandong province. It has published a report on desalination industry (2010-2015) in July 2010, providing an in-depth analysis on technical innovation and market development trends.

General Water of China is devoted to environmental protection and is continuously practicing corporate social responsibility (CSR). The core value of General Water of China is "To carry the spirit of nature of water; to attend to water treatment personally". Its mission is "To maintain the water flows of the earth, and purify the source of life". As of July 2010, it owned 18 waterworks, 16 wastewater treatment facilities, and two reservoirs. The total capacity includes 2.885 million tons/day of water supply, 1.454 million tons/day of wastewater treatment, 183.32 million tons of reservoir storage, with the pipeline network reaching 2,300 km.

The 11th Five-year Plan targeted a 10 percent reduction of COD discharge by 2010 with 2005 as base year. As of 2009, according to Ministry of Environmental Protection of PRC (MEP), China's COD discharge was reduced by 9.66 percent over 2005. The Comprehensive Working Program on Energy Saving and Emission Elimination during 2006-2010 is likely to be accomplished by the end of 2010. In addition, GWC has contributed to low carbon economy and sustainable development. The total COD reduction of GWC amounted to 65,278 tons as of August 2010, which was an increase of 6,800 tons over that of August 2009.

Besides, GWC is actively participating in public benefit activities and community activities such as poverty alleviation, educational assistance, and disaster relief in the projects' locations. For instance, the Wenzhou Central Sewage Treatment Plant, operated by General Water of China (Wenzhou Central) Co., Ltd., is also the educational base for environmental protection in Wenzhou. The plant has a daily sewage processing capacity of 200 thousand cubic meters with a sludge dying and incineration capacity of 240 tons/day under construction, serving a geographical area of 103 km2 and a population of 1.2 million. The plant has realized zero discharge through reduction and reuse of sludge resources.

Frost & Sullivan believes that General Water of China has demonstrated its comprehensive performance in aspects of growth strategy, implementation and devotion to energy saving, and emission reduction through its growth excellence and leadership, promising restructuring process, strategic development direction, and environmental compliance and social responsibility.

In light of all these accomplishments throughout the years, General Water of China is considered the worthy recipient of the 2010 Frost & Sullivan Excellence in Growth Award in the Chinese Water Industry.

General Water of China is the first water company from mainland China to be awarded the Frost & Sullivan China Water Industry Excellence in Growth Award. The competitiveness, innovation, and market leadership of General Water of China are highly regarded by Frost & Sullivan.

"The 2010 Frost & Sullivan Excellence in Growth Award recognizes General Water of China's rapid growth and excellence performance," Mr. Huang Weihua, General Manager of General Water of China said at the award ceremony at Frost & Sullivan GIL2010: China. "This award is also a promotion of General Water of China's brand awareness and implementation of our globalization strategy."

About General Water of China

China Energy Conservation & Environmental Protection Group (CECEP) and Shanghai Industrial Holdings Limited (SIHL) established General Water of China Co., Ltd. ('General Water of China' or 'GWC') jointly in November 2003. It is specialized in providing engineering solutions, equipment manufacture integration, operation management service, and technical service, through its 16 wholly owned or holding subsidiaries and one share-holding subsidiary. Among these subsidiaries, 13 are project companies and four are professional companies. For more information, please visit http://www.generalwater-china.com

About Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, enables clients to accelerate growth and achieve best in class positions in growth, innovation and leadership. The company's Growth Partnership Service provides the CEO and the CEO's Growth Team with disciplined research and best practice models to drive the generation, evaluation and implementation of powerful growth strategies. Frost & Sullivan leverages almost 50 years of experience in partnering with Global 1000 companies, emerging businesses and the investment community from 38 offices on six continents. To join our Growth Partnership, please visit http://www.frost.com.