Industry Insights

Our Industry Insights provide deep-dive analyses into global water topics, including water infrastructure, industrial water management, digital solutions, and more. Reports are available for purchase (through our Report Store) or with a Corporate Subscription.

 
Insight Report
23 Dec 2025

Energy Optimization for Water Utilities: A Digital Playbook for Cost and Carbon Reduction 
Energy costs rank among the top three operating expenses for water utilities, offering significant opportunities for cost savings. Energy use in the water sector accounts for 11% to as much as 40% in operational expenditure. This substantial portion and range underscores the potential for optimizing energy costs across the water cycle.

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U.S. Investor Owned Water Utilities: M&A Deals and Trends, Year-End 2017 

In 2017, the water industry completed more than US$2.11 billion of investor-owned utility (IOU) acquisitions — across 90 deals. Another 65 pending deals worth US$308...
29 Jan. 2018
Insight ReportDeep dive analysis on comprehensive topics to identify market opportunities.
CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY U.S. Water Utility Ownership & Strategies

U.S. Private Water Utilities: Drivers, Competitive Landscape and Acquisition Trends, 2019 

This new Focus Report from Bluefield Research provides an in-depth analysis of the changing investor-owned utility landscape in the U.S., including key policy drivers, M&A...
31 May. 2019
Insight ReportDeep dive analysis on comprehensive topics to identify market opportunities.

Private Water Utility Ownership in Texas: Competitive Landscape, Geographic Positioning, and Market Trends 

In response to the growing interest in private participation in Texas water utilities, Bluefield’s team of water experts has mapped system ownership positions across the...
11 Sep. 2022
Insight ReportDeep dive analysis on comprehensive topics to identify market opportunities.

Investor-Owned Utilities in Water: Market Share, Trends, and Company Rankings 

As city managers and utility leaders confront increasing challenges related to workforce constraints, regulatory issues, and mounting capital investment needs, IOUs offer an alternative approach...
27 May. 2025
Insight Report + DataDeep dive analysis on comprehensive topics to identify market opportunities. Data access available to Data Navigator seat holders and report buyers.

Investor-Owned Utilities in Water: Market Share and Company Rankings 

The U.S. water and wastewater utility landscape is heavily fragmented across 48,587 community water systems serving 313 million people and 23,481 wastewater treatment facilities serving...
23 Apr. 2024
Insight Report + DataDeep dive analysis on comprehensive topics to identify market opportunities. Data access available to Data Navigator seat holders and report buyers.

Third-Party O&M for U.S. Water & Wastewater Utilities, 2023 

Enabled by lower barriers to entry across a fragmented addressable market, third-party O&M providers represent the bulk of private participation in the U.S. Bluefield has...
1 Sep. 2023
Insight Report + DataDeep dive analysis on comprehensive topics to identify market opportunities. Data access available to Data Navigator seat holders and report buyers.

Water for Energy: Trends, Conditions, Forward Looking, Q1 2022 

Water is uniquely positioned in the transition toward a lower carbon future. Not only is it a critical input for traditional thermal power generation, oil...
29 Mar. 2022
Quarterly ReviewAnalysis and insights of previous quarter water market activity, trends, and events.
CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY Industrial Water Market

Top Companies in Water: Financial Signals and Market Trends, Q4 2025 

During Q3, several high-value deals exceeding US$1 billion were announced, including Ecolab’s acquisition of Ovivo’s electronics business and ADS’s acquisition of National Diversified Sales.
22 Dec. 2025
Quarterly Review + DataAnalysis and insights of previous quarter water market activity, trends, and events. Data access available to Data Navigator seat holders.
CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY Global Water Competitive Landscape Data Seat Holders

U.S. Private Water: Key Trends, M&A Activity, Market Outlook, Q2 2022 

Following an unprecedented 75 acquisition approvals in the final quarter of 2021, the first quarter of 2022 started off at a slower pace with 31...
10 May. 2022
Quarterly ReviewAnalysis and insights of previous quarter water market activity, trends, and events.
CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY U.S. Water Utility Ownership & Strategies

U.S. Private Water: Key Trends, M&A Activity, and Market Outlook, Q3 2022 

Since the start of 2022, several deals have surfaced in which a midsized-to-large local player is fully divesting its water and wastewater business to a...
30 Aug. 2022
Quarterly ReviewAnalysis and insights of previous quarter water market activity, trends, and events.
CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY CORPORATE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY U.S. Water Utility Ownership & Strategies