The shortlisted entries for the 2011 Global Water Awards are as follows:
Water Company of the Year
Desalination Company of the Year
Public Water Agency of the Year
Desalination Deal of the Year
Water Reuse Project of the Year
Desalination Plant of the Year
Industrial Water Project of the Year
Water Stewardship Award
Water Deal of the Year
Water Technology Company of the Year
Water Performance Initiative of the Year
Water Company of the Year
For the water company that has made the most significant contribution to the development of the international water sector during 2010.
Winner: Sembcorp Utilities
What is it?
The utilities arm of Singapore-listed Sembcorp Industries, involved in water and energy projects around the world.
What has it done?
2010 was in many ways an annus mirabilis for Sembcorp’s water business. The landmark acquisition of Cascal helped the group to expand its global presence to a further eight countries, and boosted its treatment capacity by 50% – the group now serves close to 5 million people globally. Sembcorp also took steps to extend its pioneering wastewater treatment business in China, built on its existing footprint in the Gulf desalination market, and strengthened its wastewater treatment and water reuse business back home in Singapore.
What makes it special?
The acquisition and subsequent integration of Cascal – completed in 2010 – gave Sembcorp instant access to a profitable portfolio of long-term water and wastewater contracts in a variety of jurisdictions in Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia. The acquisition added comprehensive municipal water expertise to Sembcorp’s already strong track record in the industrial water and desalination segments worldwide, and paves the way for broad-based growth across the portfolio.
In 2010, Sembcorp cemented its position as one of the Gulf’s leading developers of independent water and power projects, reaching financial close and breaking ground on the 68,200m3/d & 445MW Salalah IWPP in Oman in February, while signing an MOU in June to expand the membrane treatment capacity of the Fujairah 1 IWPP in the UAE.
Sembcorp was one of the pioneers in terms of reclaiming industrial effluent on Singapore’s Jurong Island, and 2010 bore witness to the development of a new WWTP to serve growing needs in the newly developed area of the island’s petrochemical manufacturing cluster. In May, Sembcorp inaugurated its NEWater plant in Singapore – one of the largest water recycling plants in the world.
Agbar
What is it?
Aguas de Barcelona is the water utility for the city of Barcelona in Spain, and a subsidiary of Suez Environnement. It has a well developed international strategy in its own right.
What has it done?
After a battle lasting nearly two years, Suez Environment acquired 100% control of Agbar in June 2010. Observers thought that this was the end of the company as an independent entity. In fact, it proved to be the beginning of a renaissance. Agbar saw revenues grow by 13.8% to €1.9 billion during the year.
What makes it special?
2010 was a tough year for the European private water market, with most companies focusing on holding what they had in a difficult political and economic climate. Agbar, however, has forged ahead, netting nine new contracts (with a total backlog of nearly €1.3 billion) and eight renewals in Spain alone.
The company has continued to build an independent international brand outside its traditional Spanish-speaking markets, targeting new jurisdictions such as the US, Turkey, North Africa and the Gulf. It has also proven that despite competing with its parent in some of these markets, it remains a good Suez group team player – it won the contract to build and operate a 380,000m3/d wastewater treatment plant serving Mapocho in Chile together with its sister company Degrémont.
Agbar’s creativity and drive have proved a vibrant success in difficult market conditions. It is an inspirational example to private water operators everywhere in the world.
Distinction: Cadagua
What is it?
The water arm of Spanish construction giant Ferrovial.
What has it done?
2010 was the year when it all started to go right for Cadagua on the international stage, with the company proving time and time again that it can compete at the highest level of international competition – and win. Increasingly scarce business opportunities at home had combined with eroding profit margins to leave parent Ferrovial facing a hard choice when it came to deciding whether to remain in the water business. Instead of taking the easy option, Cadagua embraced international expansion with open arms last year, opening new offices and scoring a series of stunning victories in virgin jurisdictions throughout the Middle East and Asia.
What makes it special?
The company’s footprint in the Middle East took a marked leap forward in 2010, as Cadagua swung to victory by winning its first contract in the UAE – an engineering, procurement and construction deal to build a 45,460m3/d seawater reverse osmosis plant at Ajman. It swiftly followed this up with its first deal in Oman, where it won the contract to design, build and operate the flagship Darsait MBR facility under Haya Water’s Muscat Wastewater Scheme.
In 2010, Cadagua demonstrated with admirable aplomb that it is not frightened to go where others fear to tread. Early in the year, it secured the contract to design, build and operate a 24,200m3/d desalination plant in Kumköy in Northern Cyprus, together with Caramondani.
Just months after opening a commercial office in New Delhi, Cadagua was awarded its first contract in India in March – a 5-year design-build-operate deal for a 170,000m3/d water treatment plant. It is judgment calls like this that make a good company into a great one.
Mitsui & Co.
What is it?
The infrastructure business division of the listed Japanese trading house, involved in power generation, water supply, energy and transportation.
What has it done?
Mitsui proved in 2010 that its 2008 acquisition of Atlatec was not just a shot in the dark, as the group picked up the contract to build the largest wastewater treatment plant in the world – the 4.3 million m3/d facility at Atotonilco in Mexico – whilst commencing construction on the Agua Prieta WWTP. Last year also saw Mitsui make a concerted effort to spread its wings in order to capitalise on opportunities in a number of new markets, signing a landmark deal to acquire a series of operational water assets in China from Hyflux, and pre-qualifying for flagship BOT contracts in Egypt and Kuwait.
What makes it special?
Mitsui’s ownership of Atlatec has given it unparalleled access to large-scale contract opportunities in Mexico, and it did not disappoint in this respect in 2010, winning the contract to build, own and operate the 4.3 million m3/d Atotonilco wastewater treatment plant – the largest of its kind in the world.
The depth of Atlatec’s experience, combined with Mitsui’s vision and ambition, is already opening up opportunities in the Middle East. In early 2010, a consortium of Mitsui and Atlatec pre-qualified for the 6th October wastewater BOT in Egypt, while the Japanese firm teamed up with local powerhouse Kharafi to pre-qualify for the first stage of the upcoming Az-Zour North IWPP in Kuwait. Mitsui’s access to competitively priced project finance loans from JBIC will provide a vital edge in its future expansion efforts.
Mitsui’s expansionary strategy is not restricted to the Gulf – in August, it struck a major deal with Hyflux to enter the Chinese market, paying ¥10 billion for a 50% stake in a new joint venture – Galaxy NewSpring – which will control a portfolio of water and wastewater treatment assets carved out of the former Hyflux Water Trust. With access to Mitsui’s balance sheet, the JV has the potential to expand rapidly as more projects come up for tender.
Desalination Company of the Year
For the desalination plant supplier which has made the greatest overall contribution to the desalination industry in 2009
Winner: IDE Technologies
What is it?
An EPC contractor and developer of desalination plants, based in Israel.
What has it done?
IDE continued to take advantage of its unique competitive position in the global desal arena in 2010, winning a significant chunk of the Chinese desalination business on offer, and competing strongly for tenders in the Americas and Southern Europe, as well as elsewhere in Asia. Significant contract wins at Soreq (Israel), Tianjin (China) and Chennai (India) came in tandem with the commissioning of the Hadera RO plant in Israel, meaning IDE has been responsible for some of the world’s largest desalination projects over the past year.
What makes it special?
IDE was all-conquering in 2010, pulling off stunning project wins (such as Chennai Nemmeli and Soreq) while at the same time showing that it can deliver on its commitments, with successful commissionings at Hadera and Tianjin.
The company has shown complete mastery of both membrane and thermal desalination. As soon as the company delivered its 100,000m3/d MED facility for Tianjin, it was asked to build another for the client. The Soreq project, meanwhile, will be the largest membrane desalination plant in the world.
IDE’s success in 2010 is the result of nearly 50 years of complete commitment to innovation. There are few technology companies in any industry which can honestly claim that they are greater than they have ever been when approaching their 50th birthday.
Biwater
What is it?
A UK-based contractor which provides water and wastewater treatment services throughout the world, including desalination through subsidiary Biwater AEWT.
What has it done?
In 2010, Biwater developed an innovative package proposal for a 10,456m3/d reverse osmosis plant at Paraquita Bay on the island of Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. As well as the desal component, Biwater’s winning proposition included two sewage treatment plants, pumping stations, pipelines and reservoirs, all on the basis of a privately financed initiative. It also won a contract to construct six SWRO plants in the Maldives, and ensured the ongoing availability of development capital by divesting itself of its remaining 58% interest in Cascal, an asset-owning water business.
What makes it special?
The Tortola deal marked an important new contract approach in an area that had previously been the domain of Consolidated Water, and showcases how a privately financed contract can be a win-win for both the client and the developer.
2010 was the year that Biwater AEWT burst onto the international desalination market – the BVI deal was its first major desalination win outside the US market, and this was followed by a $42 million contract to build six 500m3/d SWRO plants in the Maldives.
Biwater has been canny in playing to its strengths during the last 12 months – the sale of Cascal enabled the company to return to its roots as a contractor, while escaping potentially crippling debts, showing a vital ability to adapt its strategy to changing circumstances.
Distinction: Doosan
What is it?
Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction is involved in a range of industry sectors from power generation to construction, as well as desalination and water treatment. It is a division of Doosan Corporation, a South Korean conglomerate.
What has it done?
During the last twelve months, Doosan has cemented its reputation as the leading thermal EPC contractor in the Gulf desalination market, signing recordbreaking contracts and submitting daring technical bids. Its most notable achievement was in winning the EPC contract for the combined 1,037,000m3/d MSF/RO Ras Azzour project in Saudi Arabia – the biggest desalination project in the world. It has also continued its successful diversification into membrane desalination: Doosan Heavy teamed up with project developer NSC Agua (in which Consolidated Water holds a 50% stake) to pursue opportunities in the Caribbean and Mexico.
What makes it special?
Doosan’s victory at Ras Azzour took the market by storm. Its success in shaving $177 million from its bid price to come from behind showed its hunger for growth is undiminished, and winning with an MSF bid was the boldest possible statement of confidence in its technical abilities.
A contract to supply Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation with a 68,190m3/d MED plant for Yanbu Power plant followed soon afterwards. The capacity will be delivered as a single unit, making it the largest in the world to date, and continues Doosan’s bid to push the envelope in the thermal desalination technology market.
In 2010, the company signed a memorandum of understanding which will see it take an EPC role alongside developer NSC Agua on a joint US/Mexican desalination project with a planned capacity of up to 378,500m3/d. The deal is a glowing example of how cross-border synergies can be realised, and shows the kind of nerve and imagination which has taken Doosan to the top of the league.
Modern Water
What is it?
A publicly quoted UK company with patented rights to manipulated osmosis technology.
What has it done?
In 2010, Modern Water demonstrated at its plant in Oman that manipulated osmosis can reduce the amount of energy required in the desalination process by up to 30%.
What makes it special?
Manipulated osmosis, which is a variant of forward osmosis, is the first significant alternative to the established desalination technologies to emerge for 45 years. The lower energy costs it promises could represent a new paradigm for the industry.
Modern Water took a great risk in backing manipulated osmosis technology, going so far as to buy two plants to enable it to pilot and perfect the technology. Last year’s successful trial is a vindication of years of work and millions of dollars of investment.
The technology has a broad range of applications, from osmotic power to secondary oil recovery and evaporative cooling systems. Modern Water’s commitment to making forward osmosis a workable reality could have broad implications across the industry.
Public Water Agency of the Year
For the public sector organization that has made the greatest contribution to meeting the challenges of water supply during 2010.
Winner: Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, UAE
What is it?
The government-owned utility provider for Dubai, responsible for supplying electricity and potable water, as well as procuring new water and power capacity.
What has it done?
During the financial turmoil that savaged Dubai’s economy, DEWA remained a solid financial rock for the emirate. Its approach to water pricing makes it a model for government bodies that are too often reliant on subsidy. DEWA has also promoted water conservation in an area with one of the highest per-capita usage rates in the world.
What makes it special?
Already a regional leader in charging sustainable rates for water, DEWA refined its tariff-setting mechanism further over the course of 2010 to match the increase in global fuel prices, with a fluctuating charge showing customers how much their bills are affected by the change in oil and gas costs. Realistic billing has made the authority free to act on an independent financial footing.
DEWA’s strong financials were validated by two spectacularly successful bond issues in 2010, which raised a total of $3 billion for the utility at historically low rates. Meanwhile, profits continued to rise steadily, despite a slackening in demand growth for water and electricity.
DEWA continues to increase the flow of water to customers, with plans for extra potable water capacity easily covering the projected rise in demand from the emirate’s growing population. 2010 saw the start of operations at the Jebel Ali Station M desalination plant, which will eventually add nearly 500,000m3/d of water to the emirate’s network.
For the public sector organization that has made the greatest contribution to meeting the challenges of water supply during 2010.
Distinction: Aigües Ter Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain
What is it?
A public company in the autonomous government of Catalunya, supplying water to 5 million people in the Barcelona metropolitan area.
What has it done?
In 2010, ATLL completed a €800 million plan to renew the security and quality of the long-term water supply in the Barcelona area. The massive and diverse building programme was carried out in a short period of time and within budget. The rise in water treatment activity has been matched with a drive to keep energy consumption low.
What makes it special?
Within three years, ATLL has commissioned three huge installations spanning the gamut of water treatment technologies in order to address the dual issues of local water shortage and water quality. Plants at Barcelona (SWRO), Abrera (EDR) and Sant Joan Despi (UF) have reduced the burden on non-renewable resources by a total of 625,000m3/d.
It completed one of the world’s biggest reversible water tunnels to transfer water between the two major river basins in its service area – the Ter and the Llobregat – and ensure a safe and manageable supply to all parts of the region.
To offset the rise in energy consumption resulting from the new treatment facilities, ATLL completed an ambitious renewable energy project, with the construction of photovoltaic parks, wind energy plants and mini-hydraulic systems to power its assets.
Delhi Jal Board, India
What is it?
The utility responsible for water supply and sewerage services for the Indian capital.
What has it done?
DJB is taking control of its own finances and pushing towards a financially independent future, despite facing one of the most difficult demographics of any water board in the world. It provides water and wastewater services for 13 million people – this figure is set to rise to 24 million by 2021 – and has had to deal with a historic legacy of leaks, poor service and non-payment of bills.
What makes it special?
In the past, the lack of an independent income and a reliance on subsidy rendered DJB powerless to deal with its huge infrastructure problems. A 50% rise in water tariffs – introduced in 2010 – moved the agency a long way towards cost recovery and freed up its finances for ambitious spending plans.
At the same time, the board fought back losses through illegal connections – historically a huge problem in the city, where up to 42% of water never reached its destination – by offering an amnesty and a lower connection price for anyone who had previously been tapping the network illegally.
The board’s new-found financial stability has given it the freedom to start an ambitious privatisation project. Several contracts for network expansion have already been awarded on a design-buildoperate basis, and DJB is encouraging the use of private finance in meter management, water distribution, sewage treatment and industrial water reuse. Entire areas of the city will eventually be offered as water and wastewater concessions under new plans currently being put together.
National Water and Sewerage Corporation, Uganda
What is it?
The public utility responsible for water and wastewater services in urban areas in Uganda.
What has it done?
The National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) underwent a remarkable turnaround between 1998 and 2010. Thanks to the introduction of performance contracts with the government and a new management team led by chief executive Dr William Muhairwe, the once-fledgling company is now a thriving public utility: since 1998, non-revenue water has dropped from 60% to 33.3%, collection efficiency has increased from 60% to 98%, and a UGX8 billion ($3.4 million) loss has been turned into a healthy profit of UGX25.4 billion ($10.8 million).
What makes it special?
In January 2011, the Indian state of Maharashtra awarded a INR10 billion ($221 million) water concession in Aurangabad to a consortium made up of SPML Infra (80%), VA Tech Wabag (10%) and NWSC (10%). This was the first time a Ugandan water utility had won an international water concession, and demonstrates the client’s faith in NWSC’s know-how on distribution management.
NWSC just keeps on innovating: in 2010, it laid the groundwork for the introduction of an “e-water” payment system in January 2011, whereby customers will no longer have to pay their bill in cash at an NWSC office. Instead, billpayers have a range of options, from mobile banking to scratch cards to direct debits.
NWSC regularly shares its expertise with other utilities in the developing world, and has partnered with organisations in Tanzania, Kenya, Zambia, Rwanda and India.
Desalination Deal of the Year
For the deal signed during 2010 which represents the most significant step forward for the industry in terms of financial innovation or in meeting the demands of challenging circumstances.
Winner: Salalah, Oman
What is it?
An IWPP in Oman, featuring a 68,200m3/d SWRO facility and 445 MW power plant. The $1.1 billion financing package was signed in March 2010.
Who is responsible?
The developer joint venture included Sembcorp Utilities (60%) and Oman Investment Corporation (40%). Around 75% of the $1 billion project cost was met through 17-year project loans, and the remainder through equity. International banks contributed $630 million of debt, split across two tranches – a standalone facility and a portion backed by the Chinese ECA Sinosure. Standard Chartered was the lead arranger for the 17.5-year debt package and put up $148.4 million, with KfW and SMBC contributing $70 million and $60 million, respectively. Bank of China and China Development Bank each put up $173 million, while the balance of the debt came in Omani rials from a trio of local banks.
What makes it special?
The Salalah funding package was an unusually complex piece of financial engineering, and marked the first time that a Gulf IWPP took significant advantage of Chinese lending.
Despite coming at the tail end of the financial crisis, the project’s financial team secured an extremely competitive level of pricing. At just 285bps over Libor, the initial cost of the dollar debt compared favourably with projects elsewhere in the region that had more bankable fundamentals.
The strong influence of the Chinese lenders was balanced by a successful mobilisation of domestic finance, with BankMuscat joining two other Omani banks in providing almost 20% of the overall project debt. This provides a valuable hedge against the impact of currency fluctuations on local costs.
Caofeidian, China
What is it?
A RMB420 million ($63.7 million) deal to finance a 50,000m3/d SWRO plant in the Tangshan Caofeidian Industrial Development Zone in China’s Hebei Province.
Who is responsible?
Norwegian desalter Aqualyng is developing the plant on a 30-year BOT basis, in partnership with Beijing Enterprises Water Group (BEWG). The project company borrowed RMB294 million ($44.6 million) from China Construction Bank on a non-recourse basis to cover 70% of the RMB420 million ($63.7 million) project cost. The term of the loan is 13 years.
What makes it special?
Caofeidian was truly a landmark deal, boosting both the Chinese desalination market and the credibility of non-recourse financing in the sector. The desalination market in China had long been regarded as a dead end for foreign and domestic water companies seeking to invest; this deal has raised hopes that desalination could finally be about to become the next big thing in the booming Chinese water market.
Aqualyng’s dogged persistence in pursuing the project in a financial environment that has not been traditionally open to project finance is especially commendable, showing vision and leadership. It is not afraid to take risks and has shown other companies what can be achieved.
The successful funding of the first 50,000m3/d of capacity at the site is a resounding vote of confidence in the most ambitious desalination project in Asia, and will smooth the way for further plans to extend the plant up to a total capacity of 900,000m3/d.
Distinction: GDF Suez/International Power business combination
What is it?
The reverse takeover of International Power by GDF Suez Energy International. This involved the transfer of GDF Suez’s assets outside Europe, plus some in the UK and Turkey, to the ‘new’ IP, along with €4.4 billion of net debt. GDF Suez took a 70% stake in the combined business, with the remainder being re-floated on the London Stock Exchange.
Who is responsible?
France-based GDF Suez and Britain’s International Power. JP Morgan Cazenove, Nomura and Morgan Stanley acted as financial advisers and brokers for International Power, with legal advice provided by Clifford Chance. GDF Suez was advised by Goldman Sachs and Rothschild (financial) and Linklaters and Bredin Prat (legal).
What makes it special?
When the merger received EU approval in February 2011, it marked the bringing together of two of the leading players in the global power and water market, to form a new desalination powerhouse with consolidated revenues of €13.6 billion for 2009, EBITDA of €3.19 billion, and an enviable combined portfolio of independent water and power projects stretching across the Middle East.
With a combined portfolio involving more than 5 million m3/d of contracted desalination capacity, the move catapults the ‘new’ International Power to the number one spot in the table of global desalination developers. After several years of stagnation in terms of IP’s business development on the desal side, the merged entity is now in pole position to capitalise on future independent water and power project opportunities.
With a strong balance sheet and cashflows, the company can face future desalination project opportunities with renewed confidence. Should it need to tap the debt market to fund development plans or expansion into new markets, the robust capital structure and the backing of its new majority shareholder should make it possible to source lower cost debt.
Sale of AES’s Gulf IWPP stakes
What is it?
The sale of AES Corporation’s remaining stakes in two independent water and power projects in the Middle East: the 91,000m3/d and 456MW Barka 1 IWPP in Oman, and the 181,840m3/d and 756MW Ras Laffan A IWPP in Qatar.
Who is responsible?
ACWA Power International bought the Barka 1 stake, while the Qatar Electricity and Water Company bought AES Corporation’s stake in Ras Laffan. AES Corp. held its stake in Barka 1 through its joint venture AES Oasis, in which the IDB Infrastructure Fund holds a 39% stake.
What makes it special?
The deal marked AES Corporation’s exit from the desalination market in the Gulf, and allowed it to raise $360 million for investment in its core power business. The company had already effected a partial exit from Barka 1 through a successful IPO of the project company back in 2005.
ACWA Power’s purchase of a 58% stake in Barka 1 marked its first investment outside of Saudi Arabia. The group has big ambitions in terms of its international expansion – it aims to more than double its desalination capacity to 5 million m3/d by 2014, and is looking to move into other foreign markets.
ACWA Power’s stake in Barka 1 will require the company to deal with the demands of the Omani public, who own 35% of the plant through a stock listing on the Muscat Securities Market. ACWA will use the experience of working alongside public investors as a valuable test run for its own planned flotation, which is expected within a few years.
Water Reuse Project of the Year
For the water reuse project that represents the most significant achievement for the industry in 2010.
Winner: Sewage lake cleanup, Jeddah
What is it?
The removal, treatment and reuse of nearly 10 million m3 of wastewater and sludge from a lake outside Jeddah, on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast, that had been used as a dumping ground for more than a decade. The project connected existing and new treatment plants to the lake, and paves the way for the redevelopment of what had previously been a no-go area.
Who is responsible?
Responsibility for the cleanup was given to the National Water Company (NWC) in Saudi Arabia. Planning and analysis was carried out by CH2M Olayan, and engineering work by Saudi contractor Huta-Hegerfeld. The onsite wastewater treatment facility was designed and built by Suido Kiko Middle East.
What makes it special?
Planners were given just a year to complete the project, after a royal decree was passed following public outcry over wastewater dumping. They had to assuage fears that the tainted lake could poison other water sources in the region, particularly if the dam was breached by more floods like the ones Jeddah has seen in recent years.
The work included the construction of 60,000m3/d of onsite wastewater treatment capacity (including upgrading of an existing 30,000m3/d plant), as well as a 25km pipeline to link it to further capacity at Jeddah airport. The continuous stream of trucks arriving at the lake with untreated wastewater meant that the lake project was designed so it could be integrated with an upcoming wastewater network covering the whole of the city.
Now work has finished, the remaining sediment from the lake is being dried and treated with minerals to form the base layer for an attractive park/wilderness area to be housed within a huge mixed-use development planned for the lake region. The treated water was used for irrigation.
Distinction: Aquapolo Project, Brazil
What is it?
The largest tertiary wastewater treatment plant in the southern hemisphere, built to treat secondary effluent from a sewage treatment plant in São Paulo and supply up to 86,400m3/d of high-level treated water for use by local industries, and to reduce river pollution and the reliance on potable water by industry in Brazil.
Who is responsible?
A special purpose vehicle made up of Foz do Brasil (51%) and Sabesp (49%) designed and is operating the plant. Brazilian public bank Caixa Econômica Federal advised on the funding package, which involved a 90/10 split between issued debentures and sponsor equity. Membranes were supplied by Koch Membrane.
What makes it special?
The plant is a model for publicprivate relationships, with Foz do Brasil and Sabesp working hand-in-hand on procurement, construction and operations. Interest from industrial clients gave the project a firm financial footing, but they rightly demanded some of the most rigorous treatment requirements around. Cutting-edge tertiary treatment provided by disk filters designed to retain solids with a diameter larger than 400 microns is followed by biological treatment and 63 ultrafiltration membrane modules to reach the standards required.
The project was desperately needed to stop industry sucking vital drinking water from local rivers and pumping harmful outflow back into the public supply. The site chosen was in a polluted and crowded area, covering five different municipalities, meaning the attached network had to be constructed using expensive and completely non-destructive methods of pipe-laying.
The completion of the project led to immediate relief for the surrounding environment, freeing up enough potable water to supply the equivalent of 350,000 people. Water quality in the nearby polluted creek and river has improved dramatically since dumping from the STP ceased.
Emerald Coast WWTP, USA
What is it?
An 85,000m3/d municipal wastewater treatment plant built 25 miles north of Pensacola, Florida, using advanced biological treatment and disinfection to clean water for sale to two nearby industrial customers. It was built on an emergency timescale to replace a downtown treatment plant that was crippled by Hurricane Ivan in 2004, spreading untreated sewage into Pensacola Bay and contaminating potable water supplies.
Who is responsible?
Design and construction was carried out by Baskerville-Donovan (treatment facilities) and Hatch Mott MacDonald (ancillary works) on behalf of the client, Emerald Coast Utilities Agency. Funding for the $268 million project was split between the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) and municipal sources.
What makes it special?
The damage caused by Hurricane Ivan to the existing Main Street treatment plant made the replacement project an urgent priority. Preliminary plans for a replacement had anticipated more than seven years’ build-out time, but planners were told after the disaster they now had just five years to complete the project. The 25 miles of piping and connection work between the new plant and the city cross numerous county lines, railways and highways, making the project a huge logistical challenge.
The involvement of federal money from FEMA in the project meant developers had to face extra regulatory hurdles before funding could be secured. Residents and environmental analysts had to be consulted on an ongoing basis, and the client even had to hire archaeologists to excavate areas of potential historic interest at the proposed plant site.
To reach the high level of treatment required by industrial clients, the plant supplier installed a five-stage biological aerobic treatment process, followed by clarification, filtration, and a disinfection stage using chlorine created onsite, further reducing the plant’s environmental footprint.
Fulton County MBR, USA
What is it?
A 93,472m3/d water reuse treatment plant and environmental campus in Fulton County, Georgia, which includes the largest membrane bio-reactor (MBR) facility in operation in the United States. Local environmental requirements for the beauty spot demanded the facility be zeronoise and odour-free – and out of sight.
Who is responsible?
Fulton County Department of Public Works is the client, with a design and construction team made up of Archer Western Contractors and Brown and Caldwell. Membranes were supplied by GE Zenon.
What makes it special?
The plant had to be sited in a beautiful rural area, near to the scenic Chattahoochee River, meaning that the designers went all out to make the plant’s footprint as near to invisible as possible. Noise control elements resulted in the facility being effectively silent, and features including stormwater management technology, a rainwater collection system, pervious paving, and bioretention areas were installed to make the plant all but unnoticeable.
Wastewater flows into the Chattahoochee were cut by nearly two thirds, providing a desperately needed boost for the vulnerable local environment. MBR and UV technologies were chosen to provide the higher quality reuse water demanded by the municipality, and to lower the energy impact.
In a further boost for the plant’s environmental credentials, the facility uses its own reuse water for process water, irrigation, toilet-flushing, and for fire protection. This means the potable water consumption at the entire site is less than that of the average family home.
Desalination Plant of the Year
For the desalination plant commissioned during 2010 that represents the most impressive technical achievement in the industry.
Winner: Sydney (Kurnell), Australia
What is it?
A seawater reverse osmosis plant built at Kurnell to supply the city of Sydney in Australia. It has a capacity of 250,000m3/d, expandable to 500,000m3/d using the existing intake and outfall structures, and is designed to provide up to 15% of the city’s daily water needs. The plant began supplying water to customers in January 2010.
Who is responsible?
The plant was designed and constructed for Sydney Water by the Blue Water joint venture, which includes Veolia Water, John Holland, SKM and Maunsell. Flowserve Calder supplied the DWEER energy recovery device, and the membrane supplier was Dow Filmtec.
What makes it special?
The Sydney plant is the largest operating SWRO desalination facility in Australia, and the third largest in the world. It is also the biggest water project undertaken in the state of New South Wales for over fifty years.
The A$1.8 billion (US$1.7 billion) project to drought-proof Australia’s largest city was a shining example of efficient construction, coming in A$90 million (US$90 million) under budget, on time and with a safety record that exceeded all expectations.
Energy requirements are offset with 100% renewable energy from a 67-turbine wind farm, and the plant employs an extensive marine life monitoring programme. The Sydney project offers concrete evidence that with community engagement, large-scale desalination can gain widespread acceptance as a vital component of local water resource planning.
Chennai Minjur, India
What is it?
A 100,000m3/d seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant commissioned in July 2010 in Minjur, Tamil Nadu, north of Chennai.
Who is responsible?
Chennai Water Desalination Ltd. (CWDL), a consortium of India’s IVRCL and Spain’s Befesa, developed the project on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis. ILF acted as consulting engineer, with Energy Recovery Inc. providing the energy recovery devices, and Hydranautics supplying the membranes.
What makes it special?
It is India’s first large-scale SWRO facility, spearheading a wave of further projects in Chennai, Kutch and Mumbai.
Energy consumption has been reduced in an innovative way, by the use of a variable frequency drive (VFD) which optimises flow through the membranes – the first time VFD has been successfully used for a desalination plant of this size.
As the first major privately financed desalination project to reach financial close in a low-income country, the Minjur project opens the way for further large-scale desalination projects in a country badly in need of sustainable water sources.
Distinction: Thames Gateway (Beckton), UK
What is it?
A 150,000m3/d reverse osmosis plant in Beckton, East London, drawing tidal brackish water from the Thames Estuary. It was opened in June 2010 and can supply enough water for 1 million people.
Who is responsible?
The plant was built for Thames Water by Spain’s Acciona Agua with Interserve Project Services. Energy recovery devices were supplied by Flowserve Calder, with UF membranes provided by Norit and RO membranes by Hydranautics.
What makes it special?
Beckton has redefined the boundaries of what is possible using RO technology – the plant features the world’s first fourstage RO process, resulting in an 85% recovery rate.
The project is the only facility of its kind in the UK, and obtains its entire power requirement from renewable energy generated onsite from biofuels – the first large-scale membrane desalination plant in the world to do so.
Thames Water’s determination to protect the environment and ensure sustainability is at the heart of the Beckton project. Crushed aggregate from the remains of abandoned buildings on the site was used in the foundations, while the company secured special permission to withdraw water during the ebb tide when the river is at its lowest salinity, in order to reduce the plant’s energy consumption. Acoustic sound barriers and air blast systems are used to drive fish away from the intake during abstraction, ensuring maximum protection for marine life.
Tianjin MED, China
What is it?
A 100,000m3/d MED plant, currently being expanded to 200,000m3/d, which produces distilled water for the Tianjin Power Plant, as well as for use by local residents.
Who is responsible?
IDE Technologies supplied a total of 8 MED units to China’s State Development and Investment Corporation (SDIC).
What makes it special?
The expansion makes Tianjin the largest thermal desalination plant in China, and among the largest MED plants in existence anywhere in the world.
IDE’s keen awareness of the interplay between water and energy use was central to the plant’s construction and reduced environmental footprint. Circulating seawater as a coolant reduced the strain on local freshwater resources, while the use of waste heat from the power plant to drive the desalination process shows a new way forward for co-located power and seawater desalination units.
Pure table salt is abstracted from the brine as a by-product, providing a shining example of enhanced sustainability through the reclamation of waste materials from the desalination process.
Industrial Water Project of the Year
For the project commissioned in 2010 that represents the most impressive technical achievement in the field of industrial water.
Winner: Nimr reed beds, Oman
What is it?
A 600-hectare artificial wetland project treating 45,000m3/d of oil-tainted runoff from the nearby Nimr Oilfield, with the capability to handle double that capacity. The facility separates oil and water before removing dissolved solids through the reeds and then running the outflow into evaporation ponds.
Who is responsible?
A 100% managed subsidiary of Bauer Water designed and built the facility for Petroleum Development Oman (PDO). Bauer also has a 20-year contract to operate the site.
What makes it special?
Artificial wetland treatment has never been attempted on this scale before, but became a crucial option when environmental issues meant shallow water disposal was no longer an option for the oil companies active in the Nimr oilfield. With high-pressure deep-well disposal a prohibitively expensive option, Bauer’s wetland plans meant a huge financial saving for all concerned.
As an onsite, gravity-driven, purely biological solution to industrial water treatment, the reed bed not only protects the environment, but led to a huge reduction in power consumption by the oilfield, as it no longer needs to pump the oil/water mix long distances for treatment or disposal. The energy consumption of the reed bed facility is virtually zero.
Bauer is now investigating the numerous commercial opportunities generated by the facility, from harvesting and selling reeds as biofuel, to culturing algae and using the treated water to create a crop-growing area.
Chokyuenyong Industrial cassava plant, Thailand
What is it?
An anaerobic water treatment facility, handling 3,200m3/d of industrial outflow from a cassava root processing factory. The plant reduces organic contamination of outflows by 95%, while saving power by producing biogas to run boilers and generate electricity.
Who is responsible?
Global Water Engineering, represented by local agent Retech Energy, supplied and built the facilities attached onto the existing factory. The work was carried out on behalf of the client and factory owner, Chokyuenyong Industrial.
What makes it special?
More than 1,200 tonnes a day of cassava root is processed at the Thai plant every day, creating large volumes of polluted water, and using huge amounts of energy. GWE’s solution not only reduced pollution levels, but has resulted in the generation of a valuable source of energy for the factory.
Anaerobic technology clears outflow pollution to less than 5% of previous levels through several pre-treatment steps. Biogas conversion units create enough gas to replace the equivalent of 21,000 litres a day of fuel oil used in drying and processing the cassava roots.
The fuel source provides a hedge against rising oil prices, and the electricity generated can be sold back into the public network. Up to 2.7MW of power is sold back to the provincial power grid. By generating green energy, the treatment facility also generates carbon credits under the UN climate change framework, which are tradeable on the international market.
KMU dairy WWTP, Germany
What is it?
An expansion and upgrade of an industrial wastewater treatment plant through the addition of tertiary treatment facilities, with an attached combined heat and power plant. The plant treats 3,000m3/d of highly contaminated outflow from Germany’s largest cheese factory. Liquid outflow is discharged into a river, while solid phosphorus-heavy waste is sold as fertiliser.
Who is responsible?
The design, engineering and operation were all carried out by Remondis Aqua, under contract from the client, the Küstenland Milchunion (KMU) of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The project was funded through a debt package put together by a group of banks for Remondis.
What makes it special?
The outflow from the cheese factory is both very hot and heavily polluted with organic compounds, making traditional treatment very difficult. The Remondis solution not only dealt with this problem, but turned both issues into commercial opportunities.
The combination of high-quality anaerobic and aerobic biological treatment technologies both cleans water to a level where it can safely re-enter the river network, and produces pellets of phosphorous-rich solids, which can be transported and sold to the agricultural sector.
Biogas from the anaerobic treatment process is used in the CHP unit to generate electricity, as is the excess heat from the hot factory outflow. The power generated is fed back into the plant’s grid, significantly reducing electricity consumption and operating costs.
Distinction: Richmond recycled WTP, USA
What is it?
A 13,300m3/d MF/RO water recycling plant treating effluent supplied by the West County Wastewater District, and delivering high-quality recycled water to the boilers in the Chevron refinery in Richmond, California.
Who is responsible?
The East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD), in partnership with offtaker Chevron. Design advisory work was undertaken by Black & Veatch, with membranes supplied by Pall Corp. and CSM.
What makes it special?
Richmond is one of the most heavily industrialised areas in the country, and has had a difficult environmental history. The construction of an advanced membrane plant to recycle water for industrial purposes has not only reduced local demand for natural water resources, but has already been picked up as a model by two other entities in the same area.
The project was a model for publicprivate partnerships, using a unique delivery vehicle involving collaboration between a public entity and a private corporation. EBMUD and Chevron shared responsibility for the design and construction of the treatment plant and network outside the refinery, while both capital and operating costs were fully covered by Chevron.
The treatment plant is almost entirely operated remotely by EBMUD staff working at the nearby North Richmond Water Reclamation Plant, further reducing operation cost. It treats water to a tertiary level through microfiltration and reverse osmosis, before supplying it to be used onsite at the refinery.
Water Stewardship Award
For the commercial or industrial company or organization that has made the greatest contribution to the sustainable management of its water cycle.
Winner: Rio Tinto
What is it?
A global mining group with operations in some of the most water-stressed parts of the world, including the Namib desert, the Pilbara region of Western Australia, and the state of Arizona in the US.
What has it done?
Since 2005, Rio Tinto has adopted a strategic approach to water which requires the company to research and adopt the best water management practices, to engage with others on sustainable water management, and to understand better the value of water in its business decisions.
What makes it special?
Mining can cause greater damage to the water environment than almost any other industry. Rio Tinto has put itself at the forefront of innovation in water stewardship, developing new technologies for water conservation (such as its evaporation reduction modules which reduce water loss in reservoirs by 90%), new approaches to water risk analysis, and new methods of water accounting that take account of its non-financial value.
Rio Tinto has made impressive investments to protect water bodies where they might be at risk from mining operations. At the Argyle mine in Western Australia, the company has reduced its withdrawals from Lake Argyle by 95% since 2005, and last year was able to operate for 11 months without any withdrawal as a result of recycling and capturing water leaking from the tailings. This year it hopes to avoid all withdrawals. Rio Tinto’s pro-active approach to identifying where water is most valued, and making the investment to ensure that its operations do not impinge on that value, sets the standard for all natural resource companies.
While most mining companies scarcely do more than what is required by the regulators, Rio Tinto’s water impact planning process goes above and beyond what the regulations require, setting an example not only to other mining companies, but to the regulators themselves. Rio Tinto’s water stewardship is the best illustration of how natural resources businesses can work with nature, rather than against it.
Distinction: PepsiCo
What is it?
A global leader in branded soft drinks and food, which has put water sustainability at the centre of its corporate strategy.
What has it done?
In 2010, PepsiCo committed to three water-related goals: improving its water use efficiency by 20% per unit of production by 2015; striving for a positive water balance from its operations in water-distressed areas; and providing access to safe water to 3 million people in developing countries by 2015.
The company was also the first of its size to develop guidelines to support water as a human right, and did so nearly a year before the UN General Assembly ratified this in July 2010. The elements of PepsiCo’s Human Right to Water approach – safety, sufficiency, acceptability, physical accessibility and affordability – provide the baseline for all the company’s water stewardship approaches.
What makes it special?
PepsiCo has recognised that the key to water stewardship is at the local level in every plant it manages. It created a ReCon (resource conservation) training programme for water which was piloted in 2009 and rolled out across the group in 2010, ensuring that there is now a champion (or group of champions) for water, who will take action to drive efficiencies even in areas where the cost of water is so low, that inactivity is economically attractive.
The company last year began working with the Nature Conservancy to develop a strategy for a positive water balance in areas of water scarcity. This is a big challenge, but already the company has been able to save 5 billion litres of water in India through promoting direct seeding projects covering 6,500 acres of farmland.
PepsiCo has brought improved water and sanitation to 90,000 people and helped install more than 20,000 water connections in India, thanks to its work with water.org. It has also had a major impact on water services to the poor in Ghana through its support for the Safe Water Network. The company has proved that not only can it think water sustainability at every level, but can also deliver on its promises with practical and well thought-out actions.
Diageo
What is it?
A global brewer and alcoholic drinks company with a presence in various water-stressed locations in Africa and the Caribbean.
What has it done?
Diageo has been at the forefront of technologies that treat wastewater as a valuable resource. It has also been backing community water initiatives in Africa.
In 2010, the company pushed ahead with the bio-refineries concept in its distilleries in Scotland and the US Virgin Islands. Instead of disposing of wastewater into the sea, the company has invested in anaerobic digestion technology to enable it to recycle not only water, but energy (in the form of biogas) and biological material (as fertiliser). The Cameronbridge distillery in Fife, which has been responsible for 60% of the company’s global effluent, will be able to supply 100% of the heat and 85% of the electricity for the distilling process.
In September 2010, the company announced that its ‘Water of Life’ initiative had extended access to clean water to four million people in Africa since 2007, and was on course to extend access to a million more people every year until 2015.
Diageo has brought cutting-edge technology in its production facilities together with successful social outreach in the developing world to become one of the most powerful corporate drivers of better water for all of us.
AkzoNobel
What is it?
The largest global paints and coatings company, and a major producer of specialist chemicals.
What has it done?
AkzoNobel has turned its environmental commitment into a profit centre through initiatives such as its Operational Eco- Efficiency programme. Inspired by cradleto- cradle concepts, it has been looking to optimise recycling and waste reduction across the group, saving tens of millions of Euros a year.
What makes it special?
The company has been brilliantly creative in the way it has found ways to reduce its water bills. In the UK, it has introduced rainwater capture to provide water for a paint factory. In the Netherlands it has dramatically reduced its dependence on groundwater by recycling water at one of its production facilities. It is planning to roll out recycling across its paints division in future, but more than just saving water, it is saving the waste materials in water, further growing the profitability of the business while reducing its environmental impact.
In 2010, the company carried out a freshwater risk audit on all of its 320 production facilities. Based on a spider’s web system that recognises the interlinkages involved in water sustainability, rather than simple data points, it is a model that other companies concerned with water sustainability should adopt.
While water stewardship in other companies may be driven by faddish concerns about brand relationships, AkzoNobel has made water performance a key contributor to its profit and loss account, and delivered great results for the environment and for its shareholders. It is an approach that guarantees a greater dynamism and commitment for the long term.
Water Deal of the Year
For the deal, contracted in 2010, which has made the biggest contribution to the advancement of public-private partnerships in the international water sector.
Winner: VA Tech Wabag IPO
What is it?
The flotation of Indian-Austrian EPC contractor and plant operator VA Tech Wabag on the Bombay Stock Exchange. The deal raised a total of INR1.25 billion ($28 million) of fresh capital for the company, whilst facilitating a partial exit for its private equity owners.
Who is responsible?
The issue was underwritten by IDFC Capital and Enam Securities. Legal advice was provided by Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A Shroff & Co of Mumbai.
What makes it special?
The issue made a huge splash in a market starved of big-ticket pure-play investment opportunities in water. The share offering was more than 36 times subscribed at launch, which allowed the company to price the deal at the top end of the price range.
The strong showing by international investors – who took around 50% of the shares – underscores the paucity of comparable investment opportunities, and demonstrates the global market’s belief in the Wabag brand. The shares finished the first day’s trading more than 30% up, valuing the company’s equity at INR17.9 billion ($405 million).
Wabag has traditionally relied on EPC work to drive its business forward. The proceeds from the IPO will enable the company to enhance its value proposition to the global market by branching out as a plant developer.
Distinctoin: Atotonilco WWTP financing
What is it?
The $900 million financing package for the Atotonilco wastewater treatment plant in Mexico – the biggest facility of its kind in the world, with a maximum design capacity of 4.3 million m3/d.
Who is responsible?
Private sector equity holders in the project company include Acciona Agua, Atlatec, IDEAL and ICA. Mexican national development bank Banobras provided a loan, while Fonadin, Mexico’s national infrastructure fund, put up a grant. The client is Conagua.
What makes it special?
Putting together the financing for the biggest wastewater treatment plant in the world was never going to be an easy task. Given the number of parties involved, the fact that the project reached financial close just seven months after contract signing underlines the commitment of all the parties concerned, and the urgency of the wastewater treatment needs faced by Mexico City.
The plant will treat up to 60% of Mexico City’s wastewater flows, emitting the treated effluent into irrigation channels for local farmers to use free of charge. More than 90% of Mexico City’s wastewater is currently piped north to Hidalgo state to be used untreated for alfalfa irrigation, which poses serious health and environmental problems.
Banobras’ role in successfully attracting commercial bank lending into the deal cannot be underestimated. The ambitious Cuenca del Valle de México Water Sustainability Program, which envisages a series of tunnels and wastewater treatment plants to serve the Mexican capital, will rely heavily on private sector funding, and the successful financing of the Atotonilco plant – the largest project in the scheme – will provide positive momentum to the remainder of the programme.
Colombian pooled financing
What is it?
A $215 million 19-year pooled bond issue designed to fund water and wastewater investment in 105 municipalities in Colombia. The bonds were issued in three fungible tranches, the last of which was launched in December 2010.
Who is responsible?
The bonds were issued via a trust on behalf of Grupo Financiero de Infraestructura Ltda, which in turn is owned by Colombia Infrastructure Group, LLC. Citivalores, a subsidiary of Citibank Colombia, acted as underwriter.
What makes it special?
When central government transfers proved insufficient to pay for vital water and wastewater infrastructure, a group of Colombian municipalities turned to the capital markets to make up the shortfall. A unique pooled financing scheme initiated by GFI overcame the municipalities’ low individual credit standing, and gave them the means to borrow at competitive rates over a long duration.
With very little in the way of stable long-term local currency instruments to invest in, the water bonds are an ideal holding for Colombian pension funds. A yield pick-up of around 3.5% versus Colombian government bonds provided an extra kicker.
The concept of pooled financings to fund water infrastructure in developing countries has been around for a number of years. This is the first time it has proven to be deliverable on a sustained basis, and GFI is to be commended for its resilience in keeping the programme on track as it went from strength to strength in 2010.
SouthWest Water acquisition
What is it?
The $427 million take-over and delisting of US investor-owned water utility SouthWest Water. The deal was announced in March 2010, and completed six months later.
Who is responsible?
Water Asset Management LLC and JP Morgan Asset Management led the group of institutional investors which took SouthWest Water private. WAM and JP Morgan were advised by Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck and Macquarie Capital (USA) Inc. SouthWest Water was advised by Wells Fargo Securities, LLC.
What makes it special?
The take-over of SWWC represented the first successful public-to-private deal for a US investor-owned water utility in a decade, and marked the first major investment for Water Asset Management, establishing a beachhead for regulated and non-regulated growth in the US Southwest.
The proposal took the market by storm, valuing the company’s equity at a 56% premium to where it had been trading, effectively precluding any rival bids.
The deal marked a turnaround for SouthWest’s fortunes, following a protracted results restatement process which took 80% off the stock price in the dying months of 2008. The speed with which the deal was executed – it required approval from no fewer than five state public utility commissions – is testament to the dedication of the purchasers and their advisory team.
Water Technology Company of the Year
For the company which has made the most significant contribution in the field of water technology over the past year.
Winner: Norit
What is it?
A Dutch process technology specialist which started selling activated carbon for sugar refining back in 1918, but has since become a leader in ultrafiltration membranes, specialist engineered pumps, and process technology for the brewing industry.
What has it done?
Until 2007, Norit seemed to be passing between new owners every year, but since it was acquired by Doughty Hanson, it has recovered its reputation for innovation, breathing new life into an old technology (activated carbon), and pushing a new technology (ultrafiltration) further than it has been taken before.
What makes it special?
In recent years, Norit X-Flow has established itself as the leading global supplier of ultrafiltration membranes. In 2010, it showed it was still ahead of the market with the launch of the Airlift MBR Megablock and the development of capillary nanofiltration membranes.
Under Doughty Hanson, Norit has transformed itself from being a small entrepreneurial company into a global corporation with no loss of creativity in its research and development. This is a transition that other water technology companies have failed to make.
Norit’s technologies – whether they are pretreating seawater for desalination, providing a physical barrier to remove hormones from the water cycle, or providing fish-friendly pumps for large water schemes – are at the forefront of reducing man’s impact on the environment.
Paques
What is it?
A family-owned Dutch wastewater technology company which first introduced technology to capture biogas from anaerobic sludge digestion in 1981, and has led the way in “value-from-waste” technology ever since.
What has it done?
Paques has been responsible for 6.6 million tonnes of CO2 reduction per year (the equivalent of 25% of the reduction commitment of the Netherlands Kyoto agreement). It is also responsible for reducing SO2 emissions by 36.5 million kg, or 75% of the Netherlands’ Kyoto commitment. The biogas produced by its 830 anaerobic installations worldwide is equivalent to the annual natural gas consumption of 1.7 million households.
What makes it special?
Paques has developed an unparalleled portfolio of technologies that derive value from waste. In addition to being the first company to introduce the upflow anaerobic sludge blanket system of biogas recovery from wastewater treatment, the company has developed technologies for nitrogen and phosphate removal (for recycling as struvite fertiliser), sulphide and sulphate removal (and recovery as elemental sulphur), and heavy metals recovery.
Paques’ leading position in the value-from-waste market is the result of five decades of innovation. Many of its technologies have taken more than a decade to perfect. No other company in the water sector today has shown such longterm commitment to excellence in water technology.
In 2010, Paques celebrated its 50th anniversary. With a presence in 60 industrialised countries and 200 staff in China alone, Paques shows the world how economic growth can be compatible with environmental commitment.
Distinction: GE Water
What is it?
The water technology division of the world’s largest industrial company. It works in two divisions: engineered systems, and chemical and monitoring systems.
What has it done?
For some years, GE struggled to make a coherent proposition in the water industry. Then it merged its water and power divisions together, scaled back its ambitions and started to focus on practicalities and projects, and suddenly we have a brilliantly coherent water technology company.
What makes it special?
No other company in the world has the connections, the commitment to technological innovation and the political clout to make such a difference in the water space. In 2010, GE Water brought all three together, delivering successful projects, driving forward new water technologies (in the pharmaceutical industry, the ethanol industry, and the power industry, to name but a few), and engaging in global sustainability issues (through its work on the Water Index with Goldman Sachs and the World Resources Institute).
Successful projects from last year include the SunPower silicon solar manufacturing facility in Malaysia, the Omnova Performance Chemicals facility in Wisconsin and the Kinross-La Coipa gold mine in Chile. Each one has delivered significant benefits to the environment and savings to the client.
In 2010, GE made good its commitment to tackle some of the world’s most difficult environmental challenges by putting its imagination to work.
XPV Capital
What is it?
A Toronto-based venture capital company which specialises in developing water technology companies. Its portfolio includes evandtec, Enbala Power Networks, FilterBoxx, APTwater, and Pionetics Corporation.
What has it done?
Until XPV was founded by a group of Zenon refugees in 2006, there were no venture capital companies of any scale focusing exclusively on water. XPV has more or less created an industry in investing in water, working with larger venture capitalists who see the opportunities in the sector, but lack the expertise.
What makes it special?
In 2010, XPV achieved its first significant fund closing, raising in excess of $120 million. Its most significant investment during the year was in FilterBoxx, which specialises in packaged water treatment systems for the Canadian tar sands.
XPV brings together a unique understanding of water technologies with sharp-edged commercial nous to back companies which not only deliver improved environmental performance, but also the promise of a strong return for investors. The success of XPV will ensure that other venture capitalists are attracted into the sector, building momentum behind water technology as an opportunity to build value.
XPV is involved in saving water, reducing energy consumption and protecting the environment in everything it does, whether it is evandtec’s cooling water treatment systems, Enbala’s smart grid technology, APTwater’s waste contaminant removal systems, Pionetics’ point-of-use systems or FilterBoxx’s activities in the oil and gas sector. It is making brilliant green ideas pay.
Water Performance Initiative of the Year
For an initiative undertaken by a water utility which represents the most significant commitment to improving the long-term performance of water services to the public. Those shortlisted in this category will present their initiatives on 18 April at the Global Water Summit in Berlin, with the audience voting live for the final winner.
Winner: Seaal, Algiers: long-term performance improvement through knowledge transfer
Other Shortlisted Initiatives
Caesb, Brasilia: making advanced wastewater treatment a reality in Latin America
WASA, Dhaka: signing up 300,000 new connections in a year
Santan Vista, US: reducing costs through shared facilities
Wolcott, US: improving efficiency through remote operations
Evides, Netherlands: Smart network technology with TaKaDu
AquaNova, Bucharest: improved performance
Gdansk, Poland: improved performance