For more information

1910

Image légendée
The Saint Clair plant in Lyon

1912

Image légendée
CGEA (Compagnie Générale d’Entreprises Automobiles) Latil waste collection tractor

1921

Image légendée
Transporting passengers in Ile-de-France (Paris area)

1935

Image légendée
Heating Service: first contract to operate the Villier-St-Denis Hospital’s boiler

Home / About Veolia / History / 1900-1950

1900-1950

History of Veolia Environnement

1905

Ozone, a major technological breakthrough

A process using ozone to filter and sterilize water was developed to supplement or replace chloride. It was implemented for the first time four years later. Spending on research and development rose steadily throughout the twentieth century, eventually leading to the creation of the Water Research Center, Energy and Waste Management Research Center and Transportation Research Center.

1912

Founding of Compagnie Générale d'entreprises automobiles

Charles Blum created Compagnie Générale d'entreprises automobiles (CGEA), to buy, sell, maintain and operate a fleet of industrial vehicles equipped with the front-end invented by Georges Latil.
CGEA entered the Paris household waste collection market in 1919. It merged with CGE in 1980.

1935

Chauffage Service created

Léon Dewailly created Chauffage Service, a company specializing in the operation of heating and air-conditioning systems.
In 1960, Chauffage Service merged with Compagnie Générale de Chauffe (CGC), created in 1944, and the expanded company joined CGE in 1967.

1953

100th anniversary of Compagnie Générale des Eaux

The same year Compagnie Générale des Eaux celebrated its centennial, it was supplying eight million people with water in France over a 10,000-kilometer network.
CGE was also branching out into new services, such as municipal waste collection.