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French water services have been characterized by a high level of fragmentation of local authorities and have often been delegated to private operators. During the 90s price increases and corruption brought water utilities under the spotlight. Performance indicators (PI) then appeared to be an interesting tool for restoring trust and drawing attention to complementary operation aspects. As the creation of a national regulation authority was being debated, many stakeholder working groups developed their own PI selections. Despite the technical nature of the PI and its seeming objectivity, they reflect particular interests and do not actually guarantee any neutrality. The diversity of initiatives underlines the two main uses of external reporting: control or information. Even after the French regulation reform was abandoned (2002), the PI definition converged with a new law (2007). Our analysis allows us to understand how measurement difficulties and the expected uses of indicators influence their own definition. As a result, sustainable development can be seen as an ex post legitimization of the process rather than a real building framework, even though stakeholder participation and non-financial dimensions are taken into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]