Historic change for Bolesławiec’s water and sewage company

As of 3 March 2025, PWiK Bolesławiec sp. z o.o. has a new name: Przedsiębiorstwo Wodociągów i Kanalizacji Dolina Bobru sp. z o.o.

– PWiK in Bolesławiec is primarily associated with Bolesławiec. Since the Lwówek and Wleń municipalities joined the company, we have increasingly received signals from residents of these municipalities that they would like the name to be changed – says president Grzegorz Kozłowski. – This subject came up more and more often during various meetings. In such matters, we always try to listen to other people’s opinions, because we want to meet residents’ expectations. A good opportunity for the change was the Jeżów Sudecki municipality joining the Company as a shareholder. Before this became a fact, the management board held talks with the shareholders about changing the company’s name and creating a new logo. Since the Bóbr River is what connects all the municipalities served by the company, we followed that lead when choosing the new name. That is when the idea emerged that we are all located in the Bóbr Valley. And so the name PWiK Dolina Bobru sp. z o.o. was created – Grzegorz Kozłowski explains.

The change of the Company’s name has no effect on existing contracts, the president says; all remain in force and do not require amendments. The numbers have also remained unchanged: the tax identification number (NIP), the REGON identification number and the National Court Register (KRS) number. The registration in the database of products and packaging and waste management (BDO), the bank account number and the address of the main office have also remained unchanged.

– We hired employees who had previously handled water and wastewater management in the Jeżów Sudecki Municipality – Grzegorz Kozłowski explains. – And we opened another Customer Service Office in Jeżów Sudecki at 63A Długa Street – the president adds.
History of PWiK and its previous names

The beginnings of the water supply and sewage system

As for the pre-war history, information about the Bolesławiec living spring already appears in Holstein’s chronicle, the oldest chronicle of Bolesławiec. In 1538, the Bolesławiec chronicle mentions Emperor Frederick I, who scooped water from the spring with his hand and stated that it had a refreshing effect. Water drawn from the spring was believed to have miraculous properties, which was the reason for numerous pilgrimages from Saxony and Silesia. The spring supplied the town with water, which was distributed through a water-supply system. The sewage system associated with it formed the basis of an irrigation system for gardens and fields, the second in Europe after Gouda in the Netherlands.

Construction of the comprehensive sewage system began in 1531. The network extended from the Town Hall Cellar, ran through the town’s moats and reached the areas along the Bóbr River (Lohgarten), where the discharged wastewater fertilised 11 gardens. Like the water-supply network, the channels ran through the courtyards of houses. They were cleaned by hand once a year: on private land by property owners, and elsewhere by municipal services.

Legends held that the water serving people and animals brought health, prosperity and even marital fidelity. Some people also believed that it brought eternal life. Thanks to this water, Bolesławiec beer also enjoyed an exceptional reputation.
The history of Bolesławiec’s sewage system is commemorated by a memorial stone with a plaque and engraved dates. It stands in a square on Bankowa Street, by Primary School No. 2. The monument was thoroughly renovated by PWiK, which cares about tradition and the quality of Bolesławiec’s water.

The company’s history after 1945

After 1945, the company underwent several reorganisations and changes in legal status. In the 1950s and 1960s, it was part of the Municipal Communal Services Company. In the 1970s, the company operated as an out-of-town branch of the Voivodeship Urban Aesthetics Company in Jelenia Góra.

In 1975, it became part of the District Communal and Housing Services Company, and in 1976 it was incorporated into the Voivodeship Water and Sewage Company in Jelenia Góra.

Only in 1993 did the Company become an independent state-owned enterprise under the name Przedsiębiorstwo Wodociągów i Kanalizacji w Bolesławcu. However, the procedure for transforming the enterprise into a company was interrupted.

In November 2007, at the request of Mayor Piotr Roman and following a lengthy legal procedure, the Minister of the State Treasury initiated the process of re-municipalising the enterprise by signing the commercialisation deed. This resulted in the creation of a single-shareholder State Treasury company operating under the name PWiK w Bolesławcu Sp. z o.o., as the legal successor to the state-owned enterprise. The second stage of the company’s re-municipalisation was successfully completed in June 2009, when 100% of its shares were acquired by the inter-municipal union “Bóbr”, established by the local governments of the City and Municipality of Bolesławiec.

• After 1945: Wojewódzkie Przedsiębiorstwo Wodociągów i Kanalizacji Jelenia Góra Zakład w Bolesławcu
• 1993: Przedsiębiorstwo Wodociągów i Kanalizacji w Bolesławcu
• 2008: Przedsiębiorstwo Wodociągów i Kanalizacji w Bolesławcu sp. z o.o.
• 2025: Przedsiębiorstwo Wodociągów i Kanalizacji Dolina Bobru sp. z o.o.

Joining the Company by other municipalities:

• 1 May 2014: the Municipality and City of Lwówek Śląski joined the Company
• 1 January 2020: the City and Municipality of Wleń joined the Company
• 1 January 2025: the Jeżów Sudecki Municipality joined the Company

The modern PWiK Dolina Bobru sp. z o.o. Company takes care of its customers

The Company’s modern technological solutions also include the convenient e-BOK app. Thanks to it, customers can easily and quickly pay invoices, submit meter readings and contact the Company. The e-BOK app is easy and intuitive to use.

To download the app on a mobile device running Android, open ebok.pwik.dolinabobru.eu in one of the following browsers: Chrome, Opera or Samsung Internet, and allow automatic app installation.

It is possible to pay an invoice directly from the start screen. Simply click the “pay” button visible after logging in to the service.

The Customer Panel has been equipped with an additional “change payer” function, which enables the management of all customer points for customers with multiple water meters. Changing the payer updates the data for the specific customer point, such as consumption charts and tables, invoices and contracts.

In addition, the Customer Panel has been expanded to display the type of tariff assigned to each customer point. The new e-BOK system of PWiK Dolina Bobru sp. z o.o. is available to all Company customers who have a contract for water supply and wastewater disposal.