2025 Winners

In a breathtaking year for business development, Veolia was named the winner or preferred bidder at half of all recent GCC independent water projects, totalling 1.8 million m3/d. These successes, which include the Jubail 4&6, Hamriyah, and Hassyan IWPs, showcase Veolia's experience and skill in navigating project markets and consolidate its position at the very top of the water contracting world.

2024 saw Veolia break into the rapidly growing Moroccan desalination programme, securing the contract to develop a new 822,000m3/d mega project at Rabat, one of the largest anywhere outside the GCC region. Veolia made tangible progress in the deployment of its novel Barrel multi-element reverse osmosis delivery method, successfully furnishing and commissioning the system for Europe's first indirect potable reuse scheme in France's Vendée region.

Last year saw ACWA Power cement its position at the top tier of project development in GCC markets, securing four of the region's recent six desalination independent water projects. Once again demonstrating its near-peerless capability as a developer, ACWA Power dominated the GCC desalination project markets in 2024, being named either winner or preferred bidder for two thirds of all GCC IWPs in the last year.

In a move that took the company's already dominant GCC presence to new heights, ACWA Power agreed to acquire the Kuwaiti and Bahraini holdings of rival developer Engie. The $700 million deal extends ACWA Power's reach across the GCC and cements its position as the largest water project developer outside China. Its innovation DNA was front and centre as it brought fellow desalination stakeholders together for the third iteration of 'Innovation Days' in Riyadh.

2024 saw Aquatech unleash its R&D potential across multiple areas in high demand of innovation, such as zero-liquid discharge, PFAS treatment and membranes, while making it its mission to be at the forefront of water technologies for the energy transition. A deep experience in operations and maintenance enables feedback from the customer to be implemented in R&D at rapid pace, resulting in bringing ideas from concept to reliable operation at high speed.

No company was more dedicated to forging new horizons for water technologies in 2024, with Aquatech supplying its expertise and technology for North America's largest planned lithium extraction project, shipping evaporators for direct air capture and introducing powerful new electrodeionisation technology for green hydrogen production. Aquatech's work on Stegra's flagship green steel plant in Sweden is a beacon for effective provision of water technology in key markets for decarbonisation.

Xylem set the pace in water's digital revolution in 2024 by taking a majority stake in Idrica to further enhance its Vue integrated software and analytics platform. Xylem Vue empowers water managers with a suite of tools unrivalled in the industry to provide a single view of a water utility's performance, breaking down traditional silos of utility operations, helping over 300 customers across the world solve diverse issues.

With its digital prowess, Xylem is at the forefront of the battle against non-revenue water, helping cities like Hot Springs, Arkansas, reduce non-revenue water by 50% and Monterrey in Mexico realise 37% water savings. An unquestionable commitment to innovation has seen Xylem investing an extra $50 million in corporate venture capital into water, while its Innovation Lab helps foster the best-of-the-best in water technology start-ups.

2024 saw Salinity Solutions bring desalination's next frontier in energy efficiency to the world, securing commercial orders and pilots for its HyBatch system from Chile to Japan via Europe in applications including lithium enrichment, municipal water reuse and industrial ZLD. It also secured $2.4 million in Series A investment including from lithium giant SQM to fuel its impressive growth.

The HyBatch process—the world's first commercial batch RO system—varies operational pressure over time, resulting in a much lower average pressure and up to 50% less energy consumption than conventional RO while achieving impressive recovery rates. Salinity Solutions' licensing business model enables fast distribution of a technology, making advanced treatment more accessible than ever before. A commercial license with RealZLD in India has already yielded a system sale to Bosch.

Membrion made a hugely important breakthrough in industrial wastewater treatment in 2024, securing two commercial installations treating highly acidic wastewater, changing the game in wastewater economics. It also secured a multi-site off-take agreement with Colgate Palmolive as well as nine additional projects in commercial contracting. Membrion's mechanically stable membranes bring a compelling treatment proposition for industries with acidic metal-laden wastewater.

At a site treating concentrated copper wastewater, Membrion's system dramatically reduced the volumes to be trucked off-site, achieving 75% water recovery as well as concentrating the copper to a level to be economically plated for re-use. ECD is also proving a key ingredient to make traditionally very expensive zero liquid discharge a reality for industries with challenging wastewater, with one system achieving over 90% water recovery.

SZWE has become an innovative leader in water services for mega-cities, using smart and digital technologies to optimise water management. In 2024 the utility deployed cutting-edge digital technologies to great effect, charting a course to the fully digitised utility of the future. The jewel in the crown is the "Shenzhen Water Brain Cloud," an intelligent dispatching and control system integrating IoT, AI and advanced digital technologies.

Thanks to this advanced digital system, 54 water treatment plants, 23 wastewater plants, and 117 pumping stations now operate with few or even no staff in-situ. It has led to a 16% reduction in chemical use, 22% savings on electricity, and a 50% cut in labour costs. The water leakage rate has greatly dropped from 7.9% to 5.1% over the past year, saving 81.57 million m3 of water annually.

By putting its customers and community first, Yarra Valley Water has obtained the social license to transcend its traditional role and aims to go beyond simple compliance to build a more resilient utility and community. Thanks to a series of pioneering projects enabled by this approach, Yarra Valley Water is on track to achieve net-zero scope 1 and 2 emissions from July 2025, for the 2025-26 financial year, ahead of the 2029-30 financial year required schedule.

To achieve its net-zero scope 1 and 2 emissions goal ahead of schedule, Yarra Valley Water reduced emissions from operations, and purchased and produced its own renewable energy. They're also investing in high integrity local emissions reductions projects to offset residual hard to eliminate emissions, including partnering to create a carbon forest north of Melbourne. Yarra Valley's heavy focus on water supply resilience created Australia's first water offset project which enables construction companies to balance the water used during construction by investing in water recycling plants.

As Hong Kong's only operational seawater desalination plant and first to use membrane technology, TKO represents a major milestone in diversifying the city's water supply mix. Delivered by a joint venture of Acciona, Jardine Engineering, and China State Construction for the Water Supplies Department with equipment from Toray, Andritz, and Energy Recovery, the plant ensures resilience while minimising dependence on rainwater and imports. Fully commissioned in July 2024 under a 10-year design-build-operate contract.

Construction during the COVID-19 pandemic faced significant challenges from manpower shortages and quarantine restrictions. By adopting off-site construction methods including Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) and Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA), the project team ensured efficient delivery. The plant features an on-site interactive visitor centre designed to promote the benefits of seawater desalination to delegates and the public.

In a powerful demonstration of solar-driven desalination resilience, the Mykolaiv plant is not constrained by the city's severely damaged power grid. Supplied by Boreal Light with Grundfos pumps and DEG Impulse financing, reliable operation is guaranteed through integrated solar PV power generation. The system utilises five independent desalination units allowing continuous operation even if one is rendered non-functional, with real-time tracking enabling remote troubleshooting.

The plant's custom insulation, heating systems, and piping ensures sub-zero winter temperatures pose no threat to reliability, meaning the system can bolster utility resilience even in the harshest conditions. It draws feedwater directly from a nearby channel, eliminating the need for large and vulnerable storage tanks, ensuring maximum security and resilience against the risks currently posed to infrastructure in Ukraine.

The plant is the largest ceramic ultrafiltration installation in China, and the first municipal water facility to use tubular ceramic UF membranes for the core treatment process, providing Yiwu's 200,000 residents with safer, more stable drinking water. Designed by Shanghai Municipal Engineering Design and Research Institute with installation by Zhejiang Tianxingjian Water and components from Krohne, Hach, Siemens and Bürkert, the 100,000m3/d facility achieves an energy footprint of just 5kWh/km3—a twenty-fold reduction on the existing system.

The deployment of 20 ceramic membrane tanks on a tiny footprint alongside an innovative switch from horizontal to vertical layout means the entire facility takes up just 25% of the footprint typical for a plant of this design—crucial in a rapidly urbanising area. By implementing pre-treatment-free ultrafiltration at unprecedented scale, raw water can be managed at ambient pressure, far below the national average of 300kWh/km3.

In an environment where increasingly regular droughts and heavy rainfall contribute to rapidly swinging raw water quality, the technology secures water resources against long-term climate risks while meeting stringent quality demands. Delivered by Aqualia for Vigo Municipality with UF membranes from Inge (DuPont), the combination of cutting-edge technological know-how and planning expertise meant zero interruption to operations during construction—crucial for a strategically vital plant serving around 500,000 people in Vigo and nearby areas.

Limited space at the site meant an innovative vertical approach to layout in a complicated environment. Employing a circular building design piled on top of the existing wastewater decanter with multiple floors, treatment technologies can be easily accessed without any extra footprint. The expansion and complete remodelling makes the facility compliant with the highest European standards through novel ultrafiltration membrane treatment.

The successful execution and rigorous treatment standards of the plants—deploying sequencing batch reactor technology and disc filters after primary clarification—were matched by extensive sludge management including anaerobic digestion and solar drying. Developed on a build-operate-transfer basis by Acciona (35%), Tawzea (35%) and Tamasuk (30%) for Saudi Water Partnership Company with EPC by Acciona, Tawzea and MGC, the plants are central to Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 circular economy aspirations, with extensive treated sewage effluent facilities including over 70km of transmission pipelines.

The extensive biogas generation and management sets a new standard for energy sustainability in the Kingdom's wastewater infrastructure—combined with on-site solar generation, the three plants source more than 50% of their energy needs internally. The physical delivery was matched by new levels of financial innovation for the SAR2.4 billion ($630 million) package, achieving a market-first combination of green loans and Islamic financing in just six months.

The completion of the 21km tunnel system means that since 2018, more than 67 million m3 of sewage and 10,000 tonnes of debris has been captured, preventing dumping into waterways at a time when heavy rain and flooding intensify. Overseen by DC Water and managed by TYLin, Delve Underground and Schnabel Engineering with four independent design-construction teams including Parsons, Impregilo/Healy, Traylor/Skanska/JayDee and others, the system addresses both flooding and combined sewer overflows in the most efficient and sustainable approach to urban planning.

The benefits mark a huge step towards making waterways in America's capital swimmable, a goal held by many of the world's most ambitious cities. Economic development has flourished along the riverfront and the river is better able to be used for recreation. As the largest environmental project ever implemented around the Anacostia River, it marks the completion of the first phase of the 20-year, $3 billion Clean Rivers Project.

The plant is the largest MLD project in the world, reclaiming 142,000m3/d of water while recovering 1,000m3/d of sodium chloride brine and 200 tons/d of Glauber's salt. Owned and developed by Foshan Jialida Environmental Protection Technology Co. and operated by its subsidiary Foshan Sanshui District Da Tang Wastewater Treatment Co. with membranes from DuPont and Toray, the combination of physical-chemical and biochemical technologies, advanced oxidation and MLD processes separates, concentrates and refines these valuable resources for reuse within the industrial park, including in textiles dyeing processes.

A circular approach has significantly reduced production costs and dependence on external resources. Water consumption across the industrial park has been slashed by 46.86 million m3 per year while purchases of Glauber's salt have dropped by 66,000 tons per year, resulting in an RMB287 million ($40 million) per year reduction in indirect operating costs. The industrial park's CO2 emissions have been reduced by 3.257 million tons per year, alleviating environmental pressures on the surrounding area.

The project is one of the largest reuse initiatives in the food & beverage industry, recovering 75% of the MBR permeate. Designed, financed, constructed and commissioned by Cambrian under a 20-year pay-for-performance contract using its BlueCycle membrane bioreactor, the system processes partially-treated effluent from the site's existing anaerobic system. Over its lifecycle, it will treat 3.45 billion gallons of wastewater and secure 2.41 billion gallons of high-quality water for reuse, with flexibility to double the current reuse rate.

Using a water/energy purchase agreement model, Cambrian took on project construction risk with Anheuser-Busch paying only per gallon treated to the agreed quality standard. Anheuser-Busch has reduced its reliance on Houston's water utility by 10%, enabling the brewer to improve its water-to-product ratio and advance towards its 2025 water use efficiency goal. The project has also unlocked CO2 savings of 23,300 tons over the next 20 years.

Delivered after an extensive three-year piloting process, the process sets a new standard for extreme nitrogen and phosphorus removal. Designed by the Central & Southern China and Wuhan Municipal Engineering Design and Research Institutes, and delivered by EPC contractor Wuhan Water Construction for Wuhan Urban Drainage Development Co., with equipment from Veolia, Kubota, Grundfos, Siemens, Schneider Electric, ABB, Endress+Hauser, Hach, Krohne and Trojan, the high concentration powder carrier bio-fluidised bed approach enhanced existing secondary biological treatment efficiency by 20%, with dissolved air flotation pushing P levels below 0.05mg/L. The two-stage denitrifying biofilter lowers total nitrogen to less than 1mg/L.

The intense reduction in effluent pollution has transformed lake water quality, reducing South Lake's estimated renewal cycle from 275 days to 60 days, making the lake a reliable drinking water source. Despite the array of treatment technologies, the digitised design process cut construction time significantly. Power consumption is just 0.17kW/m3, meaning the highest wastewater treatment level is delivered at about RMB0.68 ($0.09) per m3.

India's environmental protection authority describes Ghaziabad as a "dark zone" for groundwater depletion, with levels dropping around 3m a year and water quality poisoned by industrial pollution. Delivered on a 15-year hybrid annuity PPP model by VA Tech Wabag for Nagar Nigam Ghaziabad with equipment from Nordic Water, DuPont, Hydranautics, Schneider Electric, Xylem and KSB, the plant helps secure the natural environment in one of the most water-insecure parts of the world. By providing membrane-treated high-quality water at INR41/$0.47 per m3, it provides an always-available circular base for industrial upskilling.

Marking the largest-yet use of the hybrid annuity model for PPP in India's industrial sphere and the first Indian use of a municipal green bond, the project was an impressive model for private and public financial innovation. The folding in of improvements and operations at the municipal wastewater treatment plant into the reuse project scope meant works boosted municipal infrastructure performance while creating a new industrial supply source.

The programme drives impact through three core actions. Upstream preservation is being attained through replacement of monoculture with agroforestry to conserve water resources. Downstream preservation is being achieved by utilising smart agriculture solutions to reduce water consumption and promote bio-pesticides. Community engagement is realised through farmers' participation in Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES), funded by private and public stakeholders.

In 2024, conservation actions provided a volumetric water benefit equivalent to 80% of Danone Indonesia's total water intake. This included planting 2.6 million trees and creating 20,000 infiltration trenches and wells. The programme has benefitted over 1,500 farmers on over 5000 hectares of land, improving water use, increasing crop productivity by up to 50% and annual income by 30%. 563,000 people benefit from improved water access and management skills.

OGW has commissioned large-scale desalination plants in Jorf Lasfar and Safi (45 million and 40 million m3/yr respectively) and wastewater treatment plants in Kasba Tadla and Béni Mellal, among other projects. As a result, OGW has reached a non-conventional water production capacity of 245 million m3/yr—the largest in Morocco and third largest in Africa. This has ensured the potable water supply of six cities and allowed 77% of OCP's industrial water needs to be covered by non-conventional resources.

By driving an unprecedented mobilisation of Morocco's local and national ecosystem, the programme has had a massive socio-economic impact. 66% of the programme's total capex was allocated to the 109 Moroccan companies which played an active role in OGW's projects. Through the programme, OGW has pioneered an impressive "Fast Track" approach to desalination, with Casablanca beginning to receive drinking water from a 20 million m3/yr desalination unit constructed in a mere seven months.

Under its capacity building initiative, Maynilad diversified its water resources by producing 1 million m3/d of potable water in 2024 through its NEW WATER direct potable reuse plants, which reduced its reliance on the Angat dam. The utility also completed the Valenzuela NEW WATER Facility and Molino Modular Treatment Plant, and commissioned the Tunasan Water Reclamation Facility, which added 20,000m3/d of wastewater treatment capacity.

NRW was reduced from 43% in 2023 to 39% in 2024, achieved through replacing 117km of pipes, detecting and repairing over 43,000 leaks thanks to new AI leak-detection technology and conducting 7,000 interventions against illegal connections. Metro Manila currently relies heavily (90%) on the Angat Dam, but it has become unreliable due to increasing effects of El Niño. Maynilad's rapid implementation of its NEW WATER facilities is testament to the success of its capacity building approach.

The utility recovered 1,075m3/d of water through reducing NRW to 19% in 2024, down from 30% in 2022, which eased dependence on the Nabaoy River, Boracay's only fresh water source. BIWC also lowered its energy efficiency index from 0.54 to 0.42 kWh/m3 over the period 2021-2024, which saved a total of $292,727 in energy costs. Both efficiency gains allowed the utility to invest in upgrades to the Manocmanoc Sewage Treatment Plant.

Boracay has a booming tourist industry, which in 2019 contributed $1 billion in revenue to the Philippines, 7% of the Philippines' total tourist revenue. BIWC's initiative ensures that Boracay remains a top tourist destination with a thriving economy, through securing clean water, promoting responsible tourism, and preserving the island's fragile marine ecosystem. Boracay's 2018 island-wide closure due to environmental degradation underscored the urgent need for sustainable water and wastewater management.

The Water Technology Idol of the Year was selected via a competition hosted on May 12 at the Future of Desalination Workshop during the Global Water Summit 2025. There, five of the most promising desalination technologies of the year were pitted against each other, each pushing innovation ever further. Attendees and our panel of judges chose from among Aquafortus' ABX system, SaltPower's Pressure Retarded Osmosis Industrial Scale, NEOM's Membrane Crystallizer, selecting Blue Brine's Brine Valorization project, presented by COO Martin Hauschild.

Blue Brine transforms desalination's biggest liability—waste brine—into profit. Their zero-liquid discharge technology extracts valuable industrial chemicals (magnesium, gypsum, hydrochloric acid, caustic soda) from concentrate while returning additional potable water, nearly doubling plant recovery from 40-50% to over 96%. This breakthrough converts an environmental problem into commercial opportunity, making desalination waste more valuable than the water itself while achieving true sustainability.

Aquafortus addresses a growing $50B global brine desalination opportunity across oil and gas (28B m³/yr), mining (10B m³/yr), and manufacturing (36B m³/yr) sectors. Its ABX technology offers breakthrough economics—over 40% lower energy than thermal methods, no chemical consumption, and potable quality water with no post-treatment required.

The company demonstrated proven performance at its 300 m³/day Texas pilot, achieving very low energy consumption of 20.4 kWh/m³ and RO-quality water. With momentum across market leaders including investment from producers and feasibility studies with major mining companies, Aquafortus targets first commercial plant operation by Q1 2027 using a capital-light licensing model.

Air Selangor became Malaysia's largest single water operator on September 13, 2019, providing holistic water services—extraction, treatment, and distribution—to 9.6 million consumers across Selangor state, Kuala Lumpur, and Putrajaya. Operating in Malaysia's most populous and economically significant state spanning 8,000km², the utility manages massive infrastructure including 8 dams, 34 water treatment plants, and 31,347km of pipeline network.

The utility operates 705 pump houses, 1,679 service reservoirs, three off-river storage facilities, and the innovative HORAS 600 hybrid augmentation system. Advanced monitoring includes 12 river stations, 1,575 sampling stations, 190 HYDRA real-time water quality analysers, and 30 autonomous chlorine injection systems. Three accredited regional laboratories ensure water quality standards across this critical infrastructure serving Malaysia's economic heartland and tourism destinations.

EMALSA manages the complete water cycle across three long-term concessions in Spain's Canary Islands: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria City (50 years), Santa Brigida City (30 years), and Las Palmas Seaport (40 years). Serving 400,000 inhabitants with 193,000 customers and 270 employees, the utility operates extensive infrastructure including one 80,000m³/day seawater desalination plant, three water treatment plants (62,000m³/day), one drinking water treatment plant (25,000m³/day), and one accredited ISO/IEC 17025 laboratory.

With €57M consolidated revenues, EMALSA manages 1,434km of water supply networks, 968km of sewerage networks, 55 reservoirs, 18 pumping stations, and treats 17 million m³ of wastewater annually. The utility supplies 26 million m³ of water yearly, processing 1.14 million invoices across Gran Canaria's densely populated western region, part of the SAUR group's water management portfolio.

EYATH serves 1.3 million people across Thessaloniki, Greece, with 2,758km water distribution network and 1,783km sewerage network through 520,000 active water connections and 71,000 sewerage connections. Established in 1998, the utility employs 345 staff and manages water treatment plus a waste management facility that processed 60,640 metric tonnes in 2024, generating €85.5M revenue—a significant jump from previous years.

The utility is 50% owned by the Greek government, with stakes held by Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (24.02%), Veolia/former Vigie Group (5.46%), and other investors (20.52%). After challenging years with minimal EBITDA, EYATH achieved €12.6M EBITDA in 2024, supported by €52.3M in infrastructure investments between 2019-2024, positioning it as a leading Greek water services provider.

Georgian Water & Power serves 1.5 million people across Georgia's capital Tbilisi and surrounding regions, managing 4,500km of water supply network and 2,300km of sewerage network. The utility operates major infrastructure including the 500hm³ Zhinvali dam, four hydroelectric plants generating 400 GWh, and employs over 2,800 staff. Originally managed by local municipalities with minimal investment, the system was privatized in 2008.

After privatization under Multiplex Energy Limited and subsequent sale to Georgia Capital in 2016, Aqualia acquired an 80% stake in 2022. The utility now serves 675,000 residential customers (50% unmetered) and 43,000 commercial customers, representing 40% of Georgia's population, while also generating significant renewable energy capacity.

Vendée Eau operates as the public drinking water utility for France's entire Vendée department on the west coast, serving approximately 700,000 inhabitants plus 5 million annual tourists in France's third-largest summer tourism destination. With €100M annual revenue and 160 employees, the utility manages 13 reservoirs, 11 treatment plants, 90 water towers, and 15,700km of interconnected pipelines, producing 50 million m³ annually.

Governed by a board of elected representatives, Vendée Eau directly handles asset management, customer relations, billing, and water metering while delegating operations to private contractors including SAUR, STGS, Suez, and Veolia. The region's economy depends heavily on agrifood industry, agriculture, and naval sectors, with 94% of drinking water sourced from surface water through sophisticated dam and reservoir systems.