The shortlisted entries for the 2013 Global Water Awards were as follows:
Water Company of the Year
Desalination Company of the Year
Desalination Deal of the Year
Water/Wastewater Project of the Year
Desalination Plant of the Year
Industrial Water Project of the Year
Water Deal of the Year
Utility Performance Initiative of the Year
Industrial Water Sustainability Award
Corporate Water Stewardship Award
Technology Idol of the Year
Water Company of the Year
For the water company that made the most significant contribution to the development of the international water sector in 2012.
Winner: Acciona Agua
What is it?
The water treatment plant construction and management arm of the Spanish Acciona Group, serving 40 million people worldwide.
What has it done?
Acciona Agua blew its competitors out of the water in 2012, dominating the headlines on all fronts. The company was active everywhere last year, penetrating new markets in Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, whilst creating a sensational upset at home in Spain, beating Agbar to win the €1 billion ATLL concession in Barcelona. No other company did as much to push the envelope in private water last year.
What makes it special?
With the project finance market at home severely crippled, Acciona thought outside the box, teaming up with Brazilian bank BTG Pactual to present the winning bid for the 50-year ATLL concession in Barcelona, causing a major upset to Agbar’s previous local dominance. With high ambitions to conquer Latin America, it is this sort of ingenuity in relationship-building which has earned Acciona Agua a fearsome reputation amongst its rivals.
Acciona Agua’s penetration of the Latin American project market is all the more remarkable for the fact that the company deliberately shunned new business there until 2008. The company won its first ever projects in Costa Rica and Colombia in 2012, whilst consolidating its already strong presence in Mexico by winning the flagship WWTP project at El Caracol.
From its base in Spain, Acciona Agua has built a strong presence in selected markets such as Australia, where it commissioned the 280,000m3/d Adelaide desalination plant in 2012. Dogged determination by a dedicated business development team meant that it also triumphed in its traditional weak spot of the Middle East last year, entering the UAE with a win at Fujairah, and blasting its way into Saudi Arabia with contract wins on both the desalination and wastewater sides. Staying one step ahead by establishing a presence in the Gulf will prove vital when exploiting further business opportunities in the wider region.
ACWA Holding
What is it?
Saudi Arabia-based ACWA Holding is a partnership between the Abunayyan Group and Al Muhaidib, set up to invest in the burgeoning market for private operation of utility services in the Kingdom. Its subsidiaries cover almost every aspect of the commissioning and operating of water and wastewater infrastructure.
What has it done?
The company has grown from humble beginnings to become a regional pioneer in developing efficient water and wastewater services, as well as a flag-bearer for Saudi companies in an industry dominated by major global players. 2012 marked the year that the Saudi government sat up and recognised the runaway success and value of its home-grown private utility specialist.
What makes it special?
2012 was the year that developer subsidiary ACWA Power International took its overseas business to a new level. The agreement of an expansion deal for its ACWA Power Barka subsidiary in Oman, combined with the buyout of operating company NOMAC, offer compelling evidence of a company that is more effective in penetrating international markets than ever before.
ACWA Holding’s management and concession business Miahona took a further step into establishing itself as a major player in 2012, winning a contract to operate two major wastewater treatment plants serving the holy city of Mecca, in collaboration with Acciona.
ACWA Power had its position as the most successful bulk water and power supplier in the Kingdom officially recognised when government bodies purchased a 19.4% stake at the end of 2012. It was an astonishing coup and a mark of recognition for the company, which has had to establish itself in the face of competition from long-established major players from Europe and the Far East.
Heckmann Corporation
What is it?
A water services company dedicated to serving the needs of the North American oil and gas industry. It offers a ‘one-stop shop’ service including sourcing, transportation, storage, piping, treatment, recycling, and well testing.
What has it done?
After being trapped by a fraudulent Chinese deal in 2008, Heckmann Corporation reinvented itself with a stunning plan to become the dominant player in the emerging market for water services in the North American shale plays. Combining far-sighted vision with a street-fighter’s deal-making savvy, the company achieved this goal in 2012 through its transformational merger with Power Fuels, the leading water services company in the Bakken Shale.
What makes it special?
The oilfield water services market has historically been a fragmented and unsophisticated business which has struggled to address the environmental issues surrounding water usage and disposal. The emergence of shale gas and shale oil makes those issues more important than ever. Heckmann Corporation, as the largest and most professional water services company working the North American shale plays, is an essential part of America’s energy future – and its water future.
In three short years, Heckmann Corporation has grown from nothing to offer a one-stop service for all water-related needs in each of the major North American shale plays. Although trucking remains the core of the activity, Heckmann leads the way in offering green alternatives such as pipelines, reuse solutions, and natural gas-powered trucking fleets.
This is the first time an industrial water services company has been shortlisted for Water Company of the Year. It reflects both the growing water challenges on the industrial side of the business, and the remarkable agility with which Heckmann has risen to meet them. This agility is even more impressive against the background of the steep fall in natural gas prices since June 2011.
Distinction: Manila Water
What is it?
The stock exchange-listed concessionaire responsible for water provision and wastewater service in the East Zone of Manila, the capital of the Philippines, serving 6.2 million people. Its international interests include stakes in water projects in Australia and Vietnam. Manila Water is partly owned by Filipino conglomerate Ayala Corp.
What has it done?
2012 was the year in which Manila Water truly burst onto the international scene. After entering the Australian market in 2010, it has built out its portfolio further by acquiring interests in a series of brownfield water treatment assets in Vietnam, and made an audacious bid to buy Suez Environnement out of its long-running concession in Jakarta in Indonesia. It also continued to make inroads at home, winning a breakthrough bulk water concession in Cebu.
What makes it special?
Most concessionaires are content to ride out the term of their contract by sticking to the job in hand. Manila Water is different – it has diversified its interests by acquiring a portfolio of domestic and international water assets, purchasing stakes in the Thu Duc BOO and the Kenh Dong Water Supply Company in Vietnam, and buying Veolia Water Philippines out of its interest in Clark Water. It raised its game even further last year by negotiating a high-profile buyout of Suez Environnement’s interests in the Jakarta concession in Indonesia.
Manila Water has not pursued international expansion at the expense of its domestic customer base. In 2012, it continued to install thousands of service connections in its core franchise area, whilst successfully signing a major bulk water PPP with the Cebu provincial government, allowing it to utilise its core East Zone experience to benefit outlying communities.
Losing sight of the ‘little man’ is a criticism often levelled at water utilities, particularly those in developing countries. Manila Water’s flagship “Water for the Poor” programme provides a 24-hour supply of safe, affordable drinking water to low-income customers, while a second initiative has improved the water facilities for more than 1.5 million people in public institutions in marginalised communities. It is measures like these which set Manila Water head and shoulders above its peers.
Desalination Company of the Year
For the desalination plant supplier which made the greatest overall contribution to the desalination industry in 2012.
Winner: Abengoa
What is it?
A publicly traded Spanish construction group involved in the development, financing and operation of water and wastewater infrastructure through the Abengoa Water group, supported by the Abeinsa engineering division.
What has it done?
The business reshuffle that distributed the water empire Befesa/Abengoa between Abeinsa and Abengoa Waterin 2011 has paid off in spades, freeing up the construction department to develop its strengths in an increasingly competitive global desal market. In 2012, Abengoa Water continued Befesa’s record of excellence in the BOT market, securing a flagship African project that broke new ground for the company in the form of a 60,000m3/d BOT at Nungua in Ghana.
What makes it special?
Completion of the Nungua SWRO contract – a project that had defeated earlier attempts by other developers – was a huge feather in the cap for Abengoa and its partners. Securing financing from South African lenders was the key enabler for a low-cost, long-term desal option that will assuage local water worries, and set the stage for further expansion by Abengoa in rapidly developing sub-Saharan markets.
Nungua was the fifth BOT project to join the Abengoa Water stable. The start of operations at the fourth, the 100,000m3/d Qingdao SWRO plant in China, cemented Abengoa Water’s position as a truly global developer.
The EPC business of Abeinsa continued to push the boundaries of design and cost-effectiveness last year, securing the 10MIGD (45,460m3/d) expansion contract at the Barka 1 IWPP in Oman – the first of its kind in the region to reuse brine reject from the existing desalination process for potable water production.
American Engineering Services
What is it?
A US-Saudi water and wastewater treatment specialist that offers custom-made solutions for clients, specialising in industrial and commercial markets.
What has it done?
2012 marked a new high for American Engineering Services (AES), which has prospered from the evolution of the desal market into one where advanced technology and tailored solutions have become more important than plant size and low margins. It picked up a string of challenging contracts, while simultaneously ramping up development at its trailblazing chemicals research department.
What makes it special?
Subsidiary American Water Chemicals reaped the benefit of a massive investment in R&D, moving to new larger offices in Florida and rolling out a successful pilot of its groundbreaking silica inhibition chemistry at the Orange County Groundwater Replenishment System. The trial, conducted at the largest plant of its type in the world, paves the way for future success in the burgeoning market for groundwater replenishment around the globe.
AES extended its already enviable position in the Middle East oil and gas water treatment sector last year, pushing the boundaries of desal technology. The Saudi Kayan Phenolics wastewater treatment plant deploys a novel two-stage evaporation process to deal with a difficult wastewater stream that is too polluted for standard membrane treatment.
The company extended its relations with high-value private clients in Saudi Arabia winning the contract to supply a dedicated 15,000m3/d SWRO plant for King Abdullah University of Science and Technology park, under the management of Saudi Armco.
Distinction: Degremont
What is it?
The €1.6 billion-a-year specialist water treatment plant arm of Paris-listed Suez Environnement.
What has it done?
Degrémont’s desalination business spread to encompass and define every aspect of the global desal market in 2012, winning contracts and completing projects in a huge array of diverse markets, with differing technical demands. It made significant progress in municipal desal, completing one of its largest references to date – the 444,000m3/d Wonthaggi plant in Melbourne – as well as winning a major emergency supply programme in Saudi Arabia. It also extended the reach of its successful and growing industrial business.
What makes it special?
The 444,000m3/d Wonthaggi desalination project in Melbourne – commissioned in 2012 – will act as a showcase for the company’s top-of-the-range technical abilities for years to come. The design of the plant – built with an almost invisible footprint and offsetting emissions through the use of renewable energy – shows that even mega-projects can deliver an environmentally sustainable solution to water scarcity.
Degrémont also showed last year that size is not always everything, mobilising dozens of small modular RO units as part of the Riyadh Water Supply Enhancement Programme. This 220,000m3/d emergency groundwater desalting project, aimed at solving a looming water shortage crisis in the Saudi capital, was procured at an unprecedented speed, amply demonstrating the French company’s ability to be nimble when it matters most.
The company’s technical acumen saw it spread its desal expertise into the most challenging parts of the industrial water treatment market in 2012. The groundbreaking Chengdu industrial reuse plant in China deploys Degrémont desalination technology as part of its array of solutions, and is the first industrial water reuse plant in China to supply municipal customers.
Doosan
What is it?
Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction is a division of South Korean conglomerate Doosan Corporation. It is involved in a range of industry sectors from power generation to construction, as well as desalination and water treatment. The company conducts the bulk of its membrane desalination business under the Doosan Hydro banner.
What has it done?
2012 marked the year that Doosan spread its wings and took its market dominance to new highs. The company that has become synonymous with the world’s largest desalination plants explored new boundaries in technology and business success last year.
What makes it special?
The acquisition of the Enpure pretreatment business towards the end of 2012 strengthened Doosan’s hand in the membrane desalination market, and underscored its ambition to diversify into new areas of the desalination market – as well as the previously untapped wastewater treatment market.
At the same time, the successful commissioning of the 68,190m3/d Yanbu MED unit – the largest single desalination unit of its kind to be constructed to date – shows that there is still life in thermal desal. Doosan was willing to back its plans with money off its own balance sheet in a bid to push the boundaries of thermal desalination technology.
While continuing to innovate, the company kept a grip on the lucrative Saudi market that has made it one of the most successful contractors of modern times. The award of the 550,000m3/d Yanbu 3 contract showed that Doosan – a name that has become synonymous with large-scale Saudi desal – continues to trump its competitors with canny bids.
Desalination Deal of the Year
For the deal, closed during 2012, which represents the most significant step forward for the industry in terms of financial innovation or in meeting the demands of challenging circumstances.
Barka 1 expansion financing, Oman
What is it?
A $233.5 million funding package to support the 10MIGD (45,460m3/d) SWRO expansion of the Barka I power and desalination plant, which will help solve the acute water shortage in northern Oman. The funding package simultaneously refinanced the project company’s existing construction debt.
Who is responsible?
BankMuscat and National Bank of Oman provided two Omani riyal-denominated tranches of financing worth $162.4 million and $43.1 million, respectively. Arab Banking Corporation provided a third $28 million US dollar-denominated tranche. Loans were provided to the project company, ACWA Power Barka, which is owned by ACWA Power International (50%), Instrata Capital (8%) and Multitech (7%), with the remaining free float publicly traded on the Muscat Securities Market.
What makes it special?
The quick approval of the deal, facilitated by bridging finance from ACWA Power, allowed an EPC contract to be signed immediately, clearing the way for the crucial expansion to move forward on an impressively tight timescale in the face of a looming water crisis.
Securing sufficient local support to refinance $170 million of outstanding project construction debt – as well as paying for the expansion – involved overcoming strict covenants imposed on original lenders now constrained by the European financial crisis and Basel III restrictions, while simultaneously establishing a benchmark for local currency water project finance in Oman.
With less than six years to run on the water purchase agreement with the Public Authority for Electricity & Water, the signing of a non-recourse loan with a lifetime of 20+ years is a huge sign of confidence in the long-term value of quality water assets in the Middle East.
Winner: Carlsbad desalination financing, USA
What is it?
A $922 million finance package to fund the construction of the 54MGD (204,412m3/d) Carlsbad desalination plant in California and an associated conveyance pipeline. Financial close was reached in December 2012.
Who is responsible?
Poseidon Resources and Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners provided $167 million of project equity. JP Morgan led a syndicate of banks which underwrote a $755 million dual-tranche tax-exempt bond issued by the California Pollution Control Financing Authority on behalf of Poseidon and the offtaker, the San Diego County Water Authority. Dickstein Shapiro acted as legal advisor to Poseidon. A Kiewit/JF Shea team will undertake the EPC work, while IDE Technologies will design and supply the equipment, and will operate the plant for 30 years.
What makes it special?
The Carlsbad financing package marks the successful culmination of a decade of painstaking preparation and tremendous tenacity by Poseidon Resources. It proves beyond all doubt that with the right determination, large-scale desalination infrastructure in the US can be financed – even in California.
After indicating an average interest rate of 5.60%, propitious market conditions allowed the debt component of the deal to be priced at 4.78% – saving ratepayers an estimated $200 million in debt service costs over the lifetime of the bonds.
The water resourcing challenges of the arid Southwestern US require innovative financing solutions. The pioneering collaborative approach taken at Carlsbad will serve as a blueprint for the financing of other large-scale desalination projects across the southern US.
Nungua SWRO financing, Ghana
What is it?
A funding package supporting the construction of the 60,000m3/d SWRO plant supplying the towns of Nungua and Terna, west of Accra. Standard Bank of South Africa provided an $88.7 million 12-year loan, with the remainder of the package coming from shareholder loans and equity.
Who is responsible?
Abengoa Water (56%) and Daye Water Investment, a subsidiary of Sojitz Corporation (44%), are the developers. The project company is Befesa Desalination Development Ghana Limited. The Ghana Water Company, Ltd. is the offtaker, and Standard Bank of South Africa acted as the debt provider, backed by political risk insurance from World Bank subsidiary MIGA.
What makes it special?
The securing of private finance for Ghana’s first ever desalination plant solved a critical water shortage problem in the country without putting further strain on the water utility’s restricted capital investment budget.
The developers’ choice of lender created an impressive Africa-centred financial solution to a project that has stymied international developers and lenders in the past. Potential political risk to the security of financing was mitigated by backing from World Bank subsidiary MIGA.
Involving an international developer through a desalination and water supply contract has paid dividends in other areas. The project company has agreed to invest in power generation and transmission assets, providing a lasting legacy for Ghana’s national infrastructure.
Distinction: Sydney Desalination Plant refinancing, Australia
What is it?
An A$2.3 billion deal to lease the 250,000m3/d Kurnell desalination plant in Sydney to the private sector for a period of 50 years. As part of the deal, state-owned plant owner Sydney Water Corp. signed a 50-year regulated offtake agreement with the new owners.
Who is responsible?
A consortium of two Hastings Funds Management subsidiaries and the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan put in A$375 million and A$285 million of equity, respectively. An A$1.64 billion bank loan was arranged by 11 international commercial banks to support the investment. The plant was commissioned in 2010 by a JV of Veolia and John Holland, and is operated by Veolia.
What makes it special?
The price paid for the lease – some A$300 million more than the plant’s regulated asset base – puts Sydney Water in the enviable position of being able to refinance its project debt, while still leaving it with a significant sum to invest in further infrastructure improvements.
Repayment of the investment will be based on regulated availability payments, which are completely independent of water volumes. This will immunise the state against the extra costs of additional water if severe drought conditions hit Australia again.
The size of the deal, and the number of lenders involved, is a tribute to the bankability of Australian water infrastructure, and a sign that the country’s desalination sector remains investable even at a time when heavy rainfall has lessened the need for alternative water supplies. Other Australian states are studying the deal structure closely with a view to replicating it across the continent.
Water/Wastewater Project of the Year
For the water or wastewater treatment plant, commissioned during 2012, that shows the greatest innovation in terms of optimising its physical or environmental footprint.
Distinction: 200 West Groundwater Treatment Facility, USA
What is it?
A unique groundwater treatment facility with a capacity of 3MGD (11,355m3/d), used to dramatically accelerate the environmental clean-up of the Hanford Site, a 586 square mile complex along the Columbia River in Washington State formerly used to manufacture and process weapons-grade plutonium. Sodium dichromate blended with river water was used to cool the nine nuclear reactors at the site, which over time contaminated the groundwater and soil with hexavalent chromium (chromium-6), as well as a variety of other radiological contaminants.
Who is responsible?
The facility was designed and constructed by CH2M Hill, acting for the Department of Energy, which owns the Hanford Site. The ion exchange resins were supplied by ResinTech.
What makes it special?
The treatment facility is a technological marvel, capable of treating seven major contaminants of concern (carbon tetrachloride, trichloroethylene, total chromium, hexavalent chromium, nitrates, uranium, and technetium-99). A network of extraction wells, connected via high-density polyethylene above-ground piping to extraction transfer buildings, removes the groundwater from the aquifer for treatment by the main process facility. After treatment the water is reinjected into the aquifer via injection wells, which helps create a barrier to contain contamination and push contaminated groundwater towards the extraction wells.
During the next 25 years, the facility will treat 24 billion gallons of groundwater and remove an estimated 110,000 pounds of contaminants, cleaning the aquifer for future generations, and ensuring the environmental sustainability of the Columbia River.
The project is a paragon of good practice, having been built with an unblemished safety record, under budget and with Leadership for Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for the biological process building. Sustainability is core to the project’s existence – approximately 50% of the steel used during construction was from recycled sources, while the use of ResinTech ion exchange resins ensures that more than 15 times the amount of chromium is retained versus conventional resins.
Winner: Eastern Treatment Plant Tertiary Upgrade, Melbourne, Australia
What is it?
The conversion of an existing 700,000m3/d WWTP serving approximately 1.5 million people south-east of Melbourne to produce high quality non-potable recycled water. The plant employs two-stage ozone treatment, along with active dual media filters, UV and chlorine disinfection.
Who is responsible?
The project was carried out by the Eastern Tertiary Alliance, a consortium including Melbourne Water, Black & Veatch, KBR, Baulderstone and UGL Infrastructure.
What makes it special?
The treatment process is unprecedented in its use of ozone for wastewater recycling. The design is amongst the most rigorously tested for non-potable water recycling in the world, undergoing more than five years of research to produce a unique configuration which eliminates the need for a reject stream leaving the plant.
100% of the secondary discharge is now treated to Class A standards, providing a valuable recycled water resource for use in agriculture and firefighting. It is the largest activated sludge plant in the southern hemisphere.
The project has significantly improved the local marine environment, while saving an estimated A$400 million (US$412 million) in outfall upgrade works, and has yielded unique research into the treatment process. The dedicated efforts of the project team have advanced the cause of water recycling in an entirely new way.
Flix Reservoir decontamination, Spain
What is it?
The Flix reservoir, on the Ebro River in Tarragona, had been polluted by a chlor-alkali plant which began operating in 1897, leading to a large build-up of sediment contaminated with mercury, organochlorines and naturally occuring radionuclides. As part of the sediment decontamination process, a 7,200m3/d wastewater treatment plant to purify the liquid effluent was brought online during 2012.
Who is responsible?
FCC is responsible for constructing, operating, and dismantling the plant following the completion of the clean-up. The client is Acuamed.
What makes it special?
The project represents one the largest decontamination efforts in Spain in recent years, removing up to 1 million m3 of contaminated river sediment – a pioneering effort to turn the clock back after more than a century of pollution.
Treating such an array of toxic and dangerous pollutants represents an impressive technical achievement. A combination of dissolved air flotation, sand filtration, activated carbon and ion exchange resins are used, with some stages by-passed, while effluent is partially or completely re-circulated through others. The versatility of the design was vital in responding to feedwater which can vary dramatically in quality.
The project headed off a potential threat to the water supplies of municipalities downstream, as well as a nearby protected natural reserve. The Flix project is a true demonstration of how even deep and long-established contamination can be cleaned up with the right application of technology and project expertise.
South Pest WWTP retrofit, Hungary
What is it?
An upgrade of the South Pest WWTP, first built in 1966, which handles 15-20% of Budapest’s wastewater, serving a population of around 500,000 inhabitants.
Who is responsible?
Organica designed and supplied equipment for the retrofit, installing six trains of its Food-Chain-Reactor (FCR) process, in which nutrients are consumed by biofilm cultures living on artificial and natural root structures. The client was Budapest Sewage Works Pte Ltd.
What makes it special?
The treatment plant was able to modernise the processes and simultaneously increase the amount of biomass available in the reactors by a factor of three without expanding the physical footprint of the site.
The new configuration requires less aeration, while decreased solids loading on the secondary clarifiers leads to reduced chemical consumption, resulting in a further lowering of operating costs.
The retrofit was executed in a phased approach, one train at a time, enabling the plant to remain operational throughout the entire installation process. In the context of urban sprawl, where finding additional space is frequently not an option, the South Pest project is a showcase for how the dual challenges of boosting wastewater treatment capacity whilst addressing more stringent effluent limits can be met simultaneously, all while transforming the site into a series of visually attractive gardens.
Desalination Plant of the Year
For the desalination plant, commissioned during 2012, that represents the most impressive technical, financial or ecologically sustainable achievement in the industry.
Distinction: Adelaide Desalination Plant, Australia
What is it?
A 300,000m3/d SWRO plant, built to supply the city of Adelaide in South Australia.
Who is responsible?
The plant was designed and built by the AdelaideAqua consortium of Acciona Agua, Trility, McConnell Dowell, and Abigroup. The plant is operated by Acciona Agua and Trility. The energy recovery devices were supplied by ERI, and the RO membranes by Hydranautics. The UF membranes were supplied by Siemens Memcor. The client is SA Water.
What makes it special?
The ADP is one of the most technically accomplished desal plants ever built, taking the search for energy efficiency to an entirely new level. Turning the plant’s 52m elevation to its advantage, an innovative energy recovery system at the outfall recovers approximately 2.5% of the plant’s total energy consumption.
Operating costs are reduced by using the largest submerged UF pre-treatment system in the world, enabling an 80% reduction in sludge generation. A unique two-pass hybrid blind split array in the RO configuration gives the plant operational flexibility, increased membrane life and a high recovery rate.
The plant reduces Adelaide’s reliance on the Murray River, while generating a minimal impact on the environment through the use of renewable energy and careful outfall management – tests showed no excess salinity just 100 metres from the brine discharge point.
Cap Djinet, Algeria
What is it?
A 100,000m3/d SWRO plant in Algeria, serving the capital city of Algiers. It forms part of one of the world’s great national desalination build-outs of recent years.
Who is responsible?
The project was developed by a consortium formed by aqualia, Inima (part of GS Engineering & Construction) and Algerian Energy Company (AEC), and was commissioned in mid-2012. ERI supplied the energy recovery devices, and the RO membranes were supplied by Dow FilmTec. The offtakers are Sonatrach and Algérienne des Eaux.
What makes it special?
The plant was commissioned during one of the most turbulent years in North Africa’s history, and the developer team is to be congratulated on overcoming a challenging political environment to provide a drought-proof, sustainable supply to more than half a million people in one of the most water-scarce areas of the world.
Numerous technical challenges were surmounted, including the fact that the facility lies in an area prone to flooding. Demanding environmental requirements for the outflow had to be met in order to protect marine life, including an extensive environmental impact study which included an innovative brine dilution simulation, and the construction of multiple outlets.
The project applied a number of energy-saving tricks, including the use of a “common centre pressure design” which allows for more flexibility and greater energy savings owing to the use of larger, higher-performance pumps.
Winner: Victorian Desalination Plant, Australia
What is it?
A 444,000m³/d SWRO project at Wonthaggi, supplying the city of Melbourne in Australia.
Who is responsible?
The Aquasure consortium – consisting of Suez Environnement, Thiess and Macquarie Capital – developed the project, with a Thiess-Degrémont joint venture designing, constructing and operating the plant. The energy recovery devices were supplied by ERI, and the RO membranes by Hydranautics.
What makes it special?
Starting up the largest desal plant in the southern hemisphere presented an immensely complicated challenge. Degrémont found an ingenious way of circumventing the risk with its “virtual plant.” A computer programme simulated the action of every single valve and pump in the facility, enabling over 20,000 tests to be conducted under safe conditions, enabling enviable cost and time savings to be realised during the commissioning phase.
It is a boldly ambitious project in every sense: as Australia’s first privately financed desal plant, it was conceived in 2007 while the city laboured under harsh stage-4 water restrictions. The project involved tunnelling under the sea for over a kilometre to minimise the environmental effects of both the intake and outfall.
Greenhouse gas emissions from the plant’s 90MW power requirement are entirely offset by the purchase of renewable energy, while earthworks make the finished plant virtually invisible within the landscape. The plant’s “living roof” contains more than 98,000 plants and shrubs, and at 6.4 acres (2.6ha) is one of the largest of its kind in the world. In terms of environmental sustainability, the Wonthaggi plant is a genuine pioneer.
Yanbu MED, Saudi Arabia
What is it?
A 68,190m3/d MED plant at Yanbu, on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia, commissioned at the end of 2012.
Who is responsible?
Doosan was the EPC contractor, designing and building the plant on behalf of the Saline Water Conversion Corporation.
What makes it special?
The plant features the largest multi-effect distillation unit in use anywhere in the world, weighing in at 15 MIGD (68,190m3/d).
The design of the facility represents a game-changing advance for MED, which has previously struggled against MSF because of the need to use more units to reach the same capacity, often pushing plant footprints to unacceptable levels.
The project was delivered using a daringly brilliant contract model, with Doosan meeting the $124 million construction cost itself through a combination of debt and equity. The fact that SWCC – one of the most discerning and experienced desalination clients in the world – only agreed to purchase the unit once it had been proven successful, demonstrates Doosan’s absolute confidence in the quality of its technology – and its research and development team.
Industrial Water Project of the Year
For the project, commissioned in 2012, that represents the most impressive technical achievement in the field of industrial water.
Distinction: Ambatovy Mine WWTP, Madagascar
What is it?
A wastewater treatment system for the Ambatovy nickel and cobalt mining and refinery site in Toamasina, Madagascar. Slurried ore is treated using sulphuric acid, hydrogen sulphide and ammonium, creating a challenging wastewater stream. This is treated using evaporation and crystallisation technology.
Who is responsible?
Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies designed and built the plant, with SNC-Lavalin acting as the client’s representative.
What makes it special?
The project turns a potentially hazardous waste stream into a value stream by recovering 210,000 tonnes of ammonium sulphate from the crystalliser. This is then sold on as fertiliser.
The inclusion of a purge crystalliser to remove chlorides from the main crystalliser section protects against chloride corrosion, reducing the capital cost of the project.
The evaporator/crystalliser, which is one of the largest of its kind in the world, was fabricated outside Madagascar on a modular basis and assembled on site, which involved a huge logistical operation. The solution brings state-of-the-art materials recovery to one of the remotest corners of the Indian Ocean.
Cape Preston desalination plant, Australia
What is it?
The first stage of a 140,000m3/d seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant in Western Australia, supplying 70,000m3/d of water to an iron ore mine in Australia’s Pilbara region.
Who is responsible?
The plant was built by IDE for CITIC Pacific, with ERI energy recovery devices and Dow reverse osmosis membranes.
What makes it special?
The entire plant was fabricated in 60 pre-assembled modules and tested in China before being shipped by sea to the job site. This is the first time a pre-engineered modular plant has been built on this scale. It represents a revolution in the desalination plant supply chain.
The plant faces difficult seawater conditions, including very high levels of TSS, high levels of organics, and large numbers of jellyfish, as well as significant daily tidal variations and conflicting currents that reverse seawater temperature and characteristics every six months. IDE was able to meet these challenges – and the very high environmental standards required by the Australian government – with its carefully designed “plug and play” solution.
Cape Preston demonstrates that IDE is continuing to deliver innovation in every aspect of the desalination process, nearly 50 years after the company was founded.
Winner: Coca-Cola AquaSel, Asia
What is it?
GE’s AquaSel system combines a desalination unit and a concentration unit which uses an EDR-based non-thermal brine concentrator to recover additional water for reuse from the reverse osmosis reject stream at a Coca-Cola bottling plant in Asia. It is the first time the technology has been used in commercial operations.
Who is responsible?
GE Water & Process Technologies, working with Coca-Cola.
What makes it special?
Water for soft drinks is typically purified using reverse osmosis, but this process rejects more than two thirds of the influent water in the form of brine reject. The AquaSel process enables Coca-Cola to use 99% of the water it withdraws as ingredient water.
Soft drinks manufacturers such as Coca-Cola want to ensure that they are drawing no more than the absolute minimum of water from the environment in order to quench their customers’ thirst. GE’s AquaSel technology makes good this commitment on a scale never seen before.
By using a low-energy, non-thermal technology, AquaSel ensures that having a small water footprint does not come at the cost of a large carbon footprint.
Permian Basin brine concentration, USA
What is it?
A system for recycling oilfield produced water in the Permian Basin for reuse elsewhere in the oilfield, using forward osmosis. The feedwater quality varies between 50,000 mg/l and 150,000 mg/l, but the product water has a salinity of less than 500 mg/l, while the brine is concentrated to more than 200,000 mg/l.
Who is responsible?
The system was supplied by Oasys Water, via Select Energy Services.
What makes it special?
This is the first use of a membrane brine concentrator with forward osmosis to treat oilfield produced water to potable quality for reuse. The technology makes the reuse of oilfield produced water more economically viable because the capital costs and operating costs are lower than for thermal brine concentrators, and the system availability is higher.
Texas has been suffering one of its worst droughts on record. At the same time, the water requirements of the oil and gas industry in the state are at an all-time high. The Oasys membrane brine concentrator meets this challenge by facilitating recycling in the oilfield.
The development of a low-cost means of bringing oilfield brines back into the water cycle is a major breakthrough in terms of reducing the environmental footprint of the oil and gas industry.
Water Deal of the Year
For the deal, signed in 2012, which has made the biggest contribution to the advancement of private sector participation in the international water sector.
ATLL concession, Spain
What is it?
A 50-year concession for upstream water supply in metropolitan Barcelona and the surrounding area, serving a population of nearly five million inhabitants. The scope involves the operation and optimisation of water treatment, storage and transport infrastructure, including the Abrera and Cardedeu drinking water treatment plants, the Prat del Llobregat and Tordera desalination plants, and 900km of pipe network. The concession for Aigües Ter Llobregat (ATLL) was awarded by the regional authority, the Generalitat de Catalunya.
Who is responsible?
A consortium of Acciona Agua (39%), Brazilian bank BTG Pactual (39%) and a number of minority stakeholders won the contract, and will pay an upfront fee of €298.6 million. The contract stipulates that a further €696.8 million be invested in annual instalments over the life of the concession.
What makes it special?
The state of Spain’s municipal finances mean that authorities in the country’s main economic centres need to find ways of monetising existing assets, but without relinquishing control. The ATLL concession does just that, with the client receiving €1 billion in fees over the next 50 years, while handing over the operation of vital drinking water assets to one of the most experienced private water companies in the world.
With Spanish banks largely out of the equation as far as financing water concessions is concerned, Acciona turned to Brazilian trailblazer BTG Pactual, which put up 39% of the money needed for the initial ‘canon’ payment. This kind of cross-border collaboration is a shining example of a paradigm shift in the way water projects are being funded in the age of austerity.
The high-profile nature of the ATLL concession meant that it was always going to be a canary for the wider roll-out of similar concessions across Spain, as local authorities look to fund their water infrastructure in new ways. Since the project was signed, a host of other Spanish cities have come forward with plans to implement similar concessions, underscoring the pioneering role played by Catalunya and Acciona Agua in making the vision a reality.
Distinction: Bayonne concession, USA
What is it?
A groundbreaking 40-year water and wastewater concession in the City of Bayonne (New Jersey), serving around 63,000 people.
Who is responsible?
A joint venture of United Water (10%) and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (90%) took over the concession in December 2012, putting up an initial payment of $150 million, 30% of which is in the form of equity. The balance came in the form of a 25-year non-recourse investment-grade bond underwritten by RBC. United Water will operate the city’s water and wastewater assets over the life of the contract. The client is the Bayonne Municipal Utilities Authority (BMUA), which will retain ownership of the assets. Joe Baumann of McManimon, Scotland & Baumann, LLC acted as special counsel to the BMUA.
What makes it special?
The City of Bayonne was facing a rate shock situation, brought about by the need to address a history of deferred investment in its water and wastewater infrastructure, and exacerbated by the burden of a high debt load. The solution offered by United Water and KKR immediately cut the city’s debt burden in half, and will save ratepayers $35 million over the life of the contract, whilst ensuring long-term rate predictability.
The joint venture has committed to investing $157 million into the system over the next 40 years in order to reduce physical water losses, replace pipes and boost operational efficiencies. United Water’s “Solution” approach, implemented for the first time in Bayonne, will act as a model for other cash-strapped municipalities looking to monetise their water systems without sacrificing ownership.
America has been struggling to find a way to strike the balance between the politically charged question of public ownership of water and wastewater infrastucture, and the need to attract private capital and expertise to optimise existing assets. The unique structure of the Bayonne deal has combined with enthusiastic support from city leadership to bridge that divide in a brand new way.
R2CF financing facility, Romania
What is it?
A €330 million framework facility designed to kick-start investment in the previously capital-starved Romanian water sector, whilst mobilising significant volumes of EU structural funding. The EBRD’s original €200 million envelope was increased by a further €130 million in 2012 amid overwhelming demand.
Who is responsible?
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) provided the funds under the facility.
What makes it special?
At €330 million, the EBRD’s R2CF initiative represents the bank’s largest ever commitment to the water sector. Crucially, it has also mobilised nearly €1.3 billion of additional funds from the EU in order to rehabilitate Romania’s crumbling water and wastewater infrastructure.
The success of the programme is unqualified. Demand from Romania’s major cities meant that the programme’s original ceiling was exceeded just 18 months into implementation. The approval of a further €130 million tranche in the middle of 2012 will ensure Romania’s smaller towns and cities can now benefit from the scheme, and will continue the upward momentum for regulatory reform instigated by the original programme.
The economic, financial and social benefits are further supported by the fact that the EBRD is offering local water utilities advice on energy efficiency strategies, and is currently investigating ways in which international private water operators can play a more active role in revitalising Romania’s water and wastewater infrastructure.
Winner: Nagpur concession, India
What is it?
India’s first full-city drinking water concession, serving 2.7 million people in the city of Nagpur in the state of Maharashtra.
Who is responsible?
Orange City Water, a joint venture between Veolia Water India and Vishvaraj Environment Ltd., was awarded the 25-year operation and maintenance contract, and will invest €18 million to carry out vital network upgrades and rehabilitate six water treatment plants under an initial five-year capital works programme. The remainder of the initial investment will come from the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). The client is the Nagpur Municipal Corporation. Debt finance was provided by IDBI Bank.
What makes it special?
In Nagpur, the supply of drinking water is restricted to 90 litres per capita per day, with network losses running at 60%, meaning that the city’s population receives running water for as little as two hours per day. The Orange Water contract will increase the availability of drinking water to 130 l/c/d over the next five years, while reducing leakage to international levels and simultaneously achieving 24/7 supply.
With the city’s population expected to reach five million within the next 30 years, connecting homes to the distribution network at a rapid enough rate to meet the concession’s goals presents a very real technical challenge. Installing an average of 6,000-8,000 water meters every month in the early years of the contract is a vital step towards collecting the revenues necessary to maintain the infrastructure in a sustainable way.
No large city in India has continuous access to drinking water, and thus the role of the Nagpur PPP as a blueprint for the Indian water sector cannot be underestimated. As well as bringing together international and local private sector expertise to tackle a social and economic issue, the contract will serve the entire population of Nagpur, including the 30% which live in the city’s slums. It is this kind of bold thinking which will set the bar for all future water concessions in India.
Utility Performance Initiative of the Year
For the initiative undertaken by a water utility which represents the most significant commitment to improving the long-term performance of water services to the public.
Distinction: New York City Department of Environmental Protection, USA
What is it?
NYCDEP is the water, wastewater and stormwater utility for New York City.
What has it done?
The City moved into the second phase of its OpX programme in 2012, after successfully identifying up to $130 million of annual savings and additional income for the utility in phase one. Veolia Water and management consultants McKinsey developed proposals to save $65-87 million annually and collect additional revenues of up to $43 million per year in phase one. In phase two, they must work with the DEP to deliver these benefits and transfer the relevant expertise to DEP staff.
What makes it special?
This is a groundbreaking partnership, of which public utilities and private operators from all around the world should take notice. It gives the City of New York access to the cutting-edge expertise of Veolia and McKinsey, while leaving city managers 100% in control of the utility.
The performance-based fee structure means that the City pays according to the benefits it secures, and as these benefits can only be secured if the relevant knowledge and techniques are transferred to the DEP workforce, this creates a genuine partnership between the two parties.
The savings identified in phase one are being delivered to schedule in phase two, putting the utility on track to save ratepayers 10% of the operating costs of the system by mid-2016. New York City has shown the commitment to outstanding performance, public sector values and creative thinking that justifies its reputation as one of the world’s greatest cities.
Winner: PUB, Singapore
What is it?
Singapore’s national water agency PUB is responsible for complete water cycle management in the country.
What has it done?
In 2012, PUB brought significant parts of its Active Beautiful Clean (ABC) Waters initiative to fruition. Working with CH2M Hill, Black & Veatch, Atelier Dreiseitl and CPG Consultants, the programme has transformed waterways across the country, turning ugly drains and forgotten streams into attractive features that everyone can enjoy.
What makes it special?
Singapore has led the way in developing the concept of liveable cities. The ABC Waters initiative puts water at the centre of the concept of liveability, and its success will act as an inspiration for cities around the world to unlock the treasures of their natural water resources.
Singapore has 32 major rivers, 17 reservoirs and more than 8,000km of canals and drains. Historically, the country has turned its back on them, which in turn has led to disrespect. The ABC Waters initiative has reversed this process, engaging the community – businesses, schools and individuals – in developing projects, and being part of their ongoing maintenance.
The project represents a paradigm shift in the way rainwater is managed. Instead of rushing water out to sea down concrete drains, the scheme involves detaining, retaining, and treating rainwater using bioretention swales, rain gardens and wetlands, which can be integrated into streetscapes and urban design. As global warming increases the likelihood of floods (and droughts), the world needs an imaginative new approach to stormwater management more than ever.
Sabesp, Brazil
What is it?
The $5 billion-a-year water and sanitation provider to the Brazilian city of São Paulo and 362 municipalities in the surrounding state. It is listed on NYSE and the BM&F Bovespa exchange. Sabesp provides water services to about 24.2 million people, and sewerage services to about 20.9 million, making it one of the largest water and sewerage service providers in the world.
What has it done?
In 2012 the company made significant advances towards negotiating a tariff revision which will be a key enabler for its BRL7.9 billion (US$4.0 billion) capex plan (2012-2015). Meanwhile, Sabesp has been investing heavily to improve water resourcing infrastructure, and to raise sanitation standards for its rapidly growing population.
What makes it special?
With 11% of Brazil’s population, but less than 2% of the water, São Paulo’s resourcing challenge makes Sabesp’s job an unenviable one. In anticipation of steep population growth, the company continued to invest heavily in reducing water losses and increasing reservoir storage capacity in 2012, and embarked on plans to add 1.2 million additional water connections by 2020.
The city’s limited water resources are stretched even further by the needs of industrial water users. Sabesp’s holistic solution to the challenge resulted in the inauguration of the groundbreaking Aquapolo reuse plant at the end of 2012, the largest of its kind in the southern hemisphere. The plant will supply recycled water to local industrial concern Braskem, freeing up enough drinking water to supply 350,000 people.
When Sabesp was incorporated in 1973, barely 20% of the population of São Paulo received piped water supply, and less than 1% received sanitation services. Decades of prudent, profitable investment mean that water supply coverage in the city now stands at 100%. Sabesp’s continued access to competitively priced finance means that it is in a strong position to deliver ambitious plans to boost its sewage coverage ratio from 82% at the end of 2011 to 95% by 2020 through the addition of 1.9 million sewage connections. Its unwavering commitment to the triple bottom line marks it out as one of the world’s leading water utilities.
Tokyo Waterworks, Japan
What is it?
One of the world’s largest unitary water systems, established in 1890. Tokyo Waterworks supplies safe drinking water to around 13 million customers in Tokyo Metropolis.
What has it done?
Tokyo Waterworks has invested heavily to ensure that its water resources, facilities and networks remain among the best in the world. In response to the devastating Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 – which left more than a million households without running water – Tokyo Waterworks devised a comprehensive earthquake plan, which features a probability-based risk assessment mechanism. It has also strengthened vital infrastructure assets to boost resilience against future seismic activity.
What makes it special?
In 2011-2012, Tokyo Waterworks invested a total of ¥110 billion ($1.2 billion) in building, rehabilitating, and earthquake-proofing water infrastructure assets. It is not prepared to rest on its laurels, however: a new management plan envisages further investment of ¥284 billion ($3.1 billion) over the next three years.
Tokyo’s position on Japan’s eastern seaboard makes it particularly vulnerable to serious seismic activity. Tokyo Waterworks has incorporated earthquake planning into its core business strategy: since March 2011, it has replaced 99% of aging and low-resistance pipes with ductile iron or steel pipework. Furthermore, in order to minimise damage in the event of disaster, Tokyo has strategically carried out anti-seismic reinforcement of supply pipes to facilities such as hospitals.
With universal coverage, non-revenue water as low as 3.1%, and a tariff collection rate above 99.9%, Tokyo Waterworks can truly claim to be one of the world’s best-run municipal water utilities.
Industrial Water Sustainability Award
For the project, commissioned during 2012, which shows the most compelling commitment to reducing the environmental impact of an industrial facility.
Distinction: Fibria bleach pulp plant, Brazil
What is it?
The expansion of an ozone-based bleaching system used at the world’s largest pulp mill at Jacareí, Brazil. The five Z-Compact systems (containerised PDO units) have a combined generation capacity of 1 tonne of ozone per hour. Together, they represent the largest ozone facility in the world.
Who is responsible?
Xylem’s WEDECO subsidiary supplied the technological solution, which is to be operated by WTA Cellulose in Brazil. Siemens supplied the control system. The client is Fibria, one of the world’s largest pulp producers.
What makes it special?
Ozone bleaching is the cornerstone of green bleaching practices in the pulp and paper industry. The technology halves the volume of fresh water consumption and wastewater production, significantly reducing the environmental impact of the wastewater stream and lowering bleaching operating costs at the same time.
The Jacareí mill is self-sufficient in electricity, with 80% of the power generated from renewable natural resources. All of the wood processed in the plant is from Forest Stewardship Council-certified sustainable sources. The removal of chlorinated organics from the waste stream reflects the premium that Fibria puts on environmental protection.
The paper industry is a significant polluter of freshwater bodies around the world. This project – the largest of its kind – proves loud and clear that there is an environmental alternative.
Winner: National Food Industries reuse system, Saudi Arabia
What is it?
A water reuse plant serving the National Food Industries Company in Saudi Arabia. The 1,700m3/d wastewater stream comes from ten different sources within a factory that produces UHT milk, juices, condensed milk, canned beans and other vegetables.
Who is responsible?
Suido Kiko Middle East, which is a joint venture between Toray-controlled Suido Kiko and Saudi Brothers’ Commercial Company.
What makes it special?
It is a highly complex reuse project, requiring the different flows to be divided between organic and inorganic streams, and then further subdivided between high-load and low-load streams.
The project enables the client to reclaim 85% of the wastewater stream for reuse in the facility, thus dramatically reducing the volume of utility water bought in.
Jeddah is one of the most water-stressed cities in the world, and one where the food and beverage industry is both thirsty in its need for water and conservative in its attitudes to reuse. This is an imaginative and technically brilliant solution to the challenge that these facts pose.
Olefins quench water treatment, Saudi Arabia
What is it?
An in-line treatment system to clean quench water used to recover olefins after the thermal cracking process at Petrokemya’s Jubail production site in Saudi Arabia. Based on MyCelx’s proprietary polymer filter cartridges which remove fine solids and trace oils, the system facilitates the direct reuse of the quench water for steam generation.
Who is responsible?
MyCelx partnered with SABIC subsidiary Petrokemya to pilot-test and evaluate the system before moving to full-scale operations at the end of 2012.
What makes it special?
This is the first time this kind of system has been used to treat olefins quench water: it dramatically improves the efficiency of the process, reducing the fouling of the steam generator by 60%, and the blow-down by 70%. This has enabled a 50% reduction in the make-up water requirement, and raised the rate of reuse of the quench water stream to 90%.
The volume of wastewater has been reduced by 50%, while hazardous hydrocarbon pollution in the wastewater stream has been reduced by 90%.
The Jubail complex is situated in one of the most water-scarce parts of the world. The MyCelx solution not only resulted in an expected pay-back period for SABIC of less than one year; it also dramatically reduces the environmental footprint of a highly polluting industry.
Qinshan demineralisation plant, China
What is it?
A water treatment system serving a large nuclear power facility in Qinshan in China’s Zhejiang Province, which uses resins to remove radioactive isotopes, corrosion residuals, and corrosive anions such as chloride and sulphate.
Who is responsible?
The plant was built by Third Qinshan Nuclear Power Company, together with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited. The Dow Chemical Company supplied the ion exchange resins.
What makes it special?
The plant’s reactor creates oxidants in the water that oxidise the resins used in the demineralisation plant. Oxidation of the nuclear-grade resin shortens its usable life and increases organic carbon release into the reactor water. Dow developed two new nuclear-grade resins (Amberlite IRN170 and Amberlite IRN99) with increased oxidative stability. This had the effect of reducing organic carbon release into the reactor water, thereby minimizing C-14 development and significantly increasing the lifetime of the resin.
The new resins extended the lifecycle of the resin beds from two and a half months to seven and a half months. This led to a 60% reduction in the volume of radioactive waste resin, which typically costs $100,000/m3 to dispose of.
Dow’s resin expertise made a dramatic contribution to reducing the environmental impact of a significant source of radioactive waste in the power industry.
Corporate Water Stewardship Award
For the company deemed to have demonstrated thestrongest commitment to water stewardship in 2012 through a specific initiative. Shortlistedcompanies were required to show recognition of water as a shared resource and a commitment tomaking water strategy an integral part of their long term business plan.
Winner: L’Oréal Beauty, China
What is it?
Creation of a unique waste and effluent treatment system at the L’Oréal factory in Suzhou, Chinathat has already yielded significant reductions in sludge production, carbon emissions and waterconsumption – and represents a breakthrough in the beauty industry.
As part of their commitment to a 50% reduction in CO2 omissions, water consumption and wasteby 2015, L’Oréal has partnered with Veolia along with an R & D research team at the University ofNewcastle to upgrade and improve the eco efficiency of the Suzhou factory’s existing waste watertreatment plant (WWTP) through optimising Veolia’s biological anaerobic treatment technology.
L’Oréal plans to replicate the project at production sites in Indonesia and France.
Distinction: CEMEX Planta Morato, Colombia
What is it?
Design of water re-use system implemented in partnership with Meals de Colombia, theneighbouring ice cream factory. Using simple technology requiring minimal cost, CEMEX has beenable to buy the waste water fromtheir neighbour and re-use it in their cement production, therebyeliminating their freshwater consumption from municipal sources, reducing competition for thelocal water supply and cutting out the need for waste water disposal.Both companies lessened theirenvironmental impact and saved money.
CEMEX is currently talking to Pepsico, Colombia to set up a similar project.
Anglo American: Los Bronces Recycling Project in Chile
What is it?
A water reuse system designed to recirculate water between the mining operations at Los Bronces(3400 m above sea level) and the processing plant at Las Tortallas (760 m above sea level), twofacilities separated by 53 km of pipeline distance. During a period of prolonged drought andsignificant expansion to their copper operations, the system has enabled Anglo American to increaseproduction at Los Bronces and reduce their use of fresh water sources by 30%.
EQUATE: Plant Water Recycle Project
What is it?
The Middle East’s first ever plant based water recycle project in partnership with Aquatech aspart of the EQUATE Green Initiative. The project aims to reduce water consumption, decrease thecarbon emissions associated with purifying water and generate distilled water for use in process andutilities. The quality of water obtained from the pilot was higher than preliminary projections.
Holmen Paper: Producing 100% recycled paper with 100% reclaimed water
What is it?
A treatment plant designed to provide reclaimed water for use in Holmen’s Madrid paper millproduction process done in partnership with Canal de Isabel II and the University of Madrid. This isthe first paper mill in Europe to use 100% recycled water for paper production.
Water Technology Idol of the Year
For the company with an early stage technology that could change the future of the water market.Four new desal-related technologies were presented during the Water Technology Idol of theYear Award session. Following each presentation, the presenter was interviewed by four panellistsbefore the audience voted on the technology that it considered to be most likely to live up to the presenter’s expectations. > More on this years participants
Winner: Gradiant Corporation
What is it?
Carrier Gas Extraction (CGE) Process – A unique humidification-dehumidification (HDH) processable to produce distillate-quality water from a 75,000 mg/L TDS feed while achieving an 85 percentrecovery. The system was developed and tested over a five year period by Prakash Narayan andhis colleagues in Professor John Lienhard’s MIT research group, with funding and collaborationfrom Saudi Arabia’s King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals. It has been demonstrated toconcentrate high salinity feedwater beyond saturation levels at a top temperature of 70°C (158°F),an electricity consumption of 1 kWh/m3 (3.8 kWh/kgal) and a 5.0 GOR.
Narayan formed Gradiant Corporation with Dr. Anurag Bajpayee to commercialise the system as anaffordable zero liquid discharge process that is well-suited for concentrating highly saline brines.Reliable operations of the demonstration unit at pilot scale have met all performance objectivesand the company is now focused on brine concentration applications in the upstream oil and gasindustry. They have already had some success at oilfields across the US.
Each individual system consists of two, one-meter diameter columns. Feedwater first enters the top of a two-meter tall dehumidifier column, flowing downwards in a coil tube that passes througheach stage. Upon exiting the dehumidifier, the temperature of the pre-heated feedwater mustbe heated an additional 10-15°C (18-27°F). It is then introduced at the top of the five-meter tallhumidifier column where it is sprayed over a bed filled with plastic packing material to increase thecolumn’s liquid surface area. Some of the feedwater evaporates, humidifying the air, while the non-evaporated portion of the feed is removed from the bottom of the column as saturated brine.
The humidified air exits the column and is sparged successively into the dehumidifier column fromthe bottom-most (first) stage to the top-most (last) stage, to continue the process. Distillate formedduring the dehumidification of humid air is collected from each stage and discharged as product water.
The system’s relatively low temperatures and pressures enable the vessels and humidifier packingto be constructed of nonmetallic materials. In fact, the low cost of the packing means that if scaling should occur, it is more economical to replace it than to clean it.
Distinction: A two-way tie between Water Planet Engineering and Watersolutions
Water Planet Engineering
What is it?
PolyCera Membrane is a new polymeric membrane material that exhibits properties commonlyassociated with ceramic membranes developed at UCLA. It is super-hydrophilic and super-oleophobic to improve fouling resistance, and also provides acid, base and temperature tolerance,which makes cleaning easier. Its permeability and molecular weight cutoff can be tuned across the MF to NF range. It will initially be offered to the MBR, oilfield and produced water markets, and is expected to be commercially available in 24 months.
Watersolutions
What is it?
Low-temperature Distiller is the company’s new thermal desalination technology. The systememploys a unique direct contact evaporator and condenser, in which no tube bundles are used, andis able to achieve efficient heat transfer that provides simple, robust and economical operation. Thecompany has developed the technology for use in seawater desal, brine concentration and oil and gas applications.
The process uses waste heat to preheat saline feedwater in a plate-type heat exchanger before thewarm water is sprayed into an evaporation vessel operating slightly below atmospheric pressure. The resulting vapor passes through a mist eliminator and into a condenser chamber in which coolcondensate is sprayed. The resulting distillate is then extracted from the system. The process isself-adjusting so that brine is automatically extracted based on its conductivity, and new feedwater is added. The amount of water evaporated is almost linearly proportional to the amount of heat provided.
Watersolutions has operated a full-scale, 500 m3/d (132,100 GPD) unit at a tourist resort on Egypt’s Red Sea coast at El Gouna, using jacket water from diesel generators. The two-stage system operated at a specific energy consumption of 2 kWh/m3 (7.6 kWh/kgal), with production outputs ranging from 10 to 110 percent of design capacity, and brine concentrations of up to 200,000 mg/L TDS.
The company will focus on projects with production capacities of 500 to 20,000 m3/d (0.13-5.3MGD) and will also consider brine concentration applications.