“Take or pay” is a contract form commonly used in international and domestic bulk energy trade
which was first applied by Royal Dutch Shell in the international energy sales market in the 1970s
and has now developed into an international business practice and rule. In addition to the sales of bulk energy such as natural gas
oil
and other raw materials
the “take or pay” fee collection mode has also been applied to a certain extent in the fields of power supply
water supply
sewage treatment
etc. This article analyzes the lessons-learned of the “take or pay” water fee collection mode for the formation of water prices and water fee collection mechanismsbased on the characteristics of major backbone water diversion projects in China's current national water network