On Monday 09th December, Bluewater Bio, an award winning provider of high-performance, cost-effective water and wastewater treatment technologies, officially launched its HYBACS® wastewater treatment upgrade at the Tubli Water Pollution Control Centre (“WPCC”) in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The launch ceremony was held under the patronage of H.E. Essam Bin Abdulla Khalaf, who was joined by many other esteemed guests, including Mr Iain Lindsay OBE, Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Serving a Population Equivalent of 800,000, this plant inauguration marks the official completion of the largest environmental regeneration project of its kind in the GCC, and just the first phase of the Bahrain Government’s long term master plan for the Tubli WPCC.

In his speech during the ceremony, Daniel Ishag, founder and CEO of Bluewater Bio, said: “Bluewater Bio is delighted to have been selected by the Bahraini government for the 8 million Dinar Tubli wastewater treatment plant upgrade. This is a prestigious project, on a global scale, which will make a major contribution to the regional environment and ecology. We are proud to help future proof the country’s social and economic growth.”

The US $20 million HYBACS upgrade, implemented by BwB to help alleviate overloading at the original Tubli works, is demonstrating exceptional operational performance; producing test results that consistently meet the highest local and international treatment standards.
Eng. Khalifa Al Mansoor, Assistant Undersecretary at the Bahrain Ministry of Works added: “We meet today to celebrate the opening of the Tubli Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade project using HYBACS. Today’s event, in the presence of His Excellency the Minister of Works, Engineer Essam bin Abdulla Khalaf, coincides with the Kingdom of Bahrain’s National Day Celebrations. The upgrade project treats 100,000m3/day of the sewage water flowing to theplant, which now totals 350,000m3/day. Preliminary results indicate that the new system is operating efficiently; in line with the standard specifications and measures adopted in the project.”

The project was implemented in two stages to meet the Client’s continuous treatment requirements. The first stage, completed in June 2013, saw the Company’s SMART™ units, which power the HYBACS process, treat 50,000m3/day of wastewater. Following completion of stage 2, the HYBACS plant is now treating 100,000 of the approximately 350,000m3/day incoming flow to Tubli Treatment Plant.

Combined, these two stages involved converting two of Tubli’s ten existing aeration lanes and four of its twelve clarifiers to the HYBACS process, with 42 SMART units positioned upstream of the existing two aeration lanes. The 100,000m3/d excess flow was diverted from the existing preliminary treatment works to the HYBACS plant, increasing the loading by an additional 150% compared with the original design loading.

Daniel Ishag concluded: “At 42 SMART units, the HYBACS upgrade at Tubli Bay represents a watershed moment for Bluewater Bio, and one which steps us up a gear on the global stage. To gain recognition from the Minister and his team on a project as large and critical for Bahrain adds credence not only to our HYBACS technology but also to Bluewater Bio as a whole.

“I am personally thrilled with the effluent quality results at Tubli to date, and the strong feedback we have received from the Ministry of Works. I would like to thank everyone involved in the Tubli project: not only Bluewater Bio’s own contracting team; but also the Ministry itself, including Engineers Asma Murad, Ebrahim Al-Hawaj and Ban Najim Eldin, our delivery partners P2M, Atlas and Aqua Treat and the UKTI’s Global Entrepreneur Programme (“GEP”). We look forward to growing collaborations of this nature, both in Bahrain and the wider GCC.”

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Bluewater Bio International, a leading provider of innovative high-performance, cost-effective water and wastewater treatment technologies, is pleased to announce that their innovative high performance multimedia filtration technology, FilterClear, has been selected by Anglian Water (“Anglian”) to be included in their Tertiary Solids Removal Framework. The contract has been awarded for three years, with an option to extend for another seven years.

A FilterClear demonstration plant was operated for four months at Cambridge Sewage Treatment Works (STW). Operational and water quality data was collected to demonstrate the effectiveness of the technology. The performance met the client’s expectation and has been considered as a potential alternative to MBR or conventional sand filters where stringent solids performance is required.

In line with the National Environment Programme (NEP) to improve environment and water quality, there is a trend of increasingly demanding consent limits for discharging treated wastewater into water bodies. Under the current AMP5 period (2010 – 2015), Anglian has sites with a Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) consent below 10 mg/l. Similarly stringent discharge consents are being widely adopted during AMP6, both at Anglian and across the UK.

In the meantime, Ofwat’s rigorous approach to price limits dictates that water companies’ investment programmes have to select the most cost-effective technologies to achieve ever more stringent consents. Water companies are incentivized to deliver the most sustainable treatment solutions and, in order to achieve the required BOD standards with acceptable CAPEX and OPEX, Anglian Water, through the @one Alliance, are actively evaluating innovative technologies. FilterClear’s selection as a tertiary solution follows pilot demonstrations of competing technologies, with effluent quality and operational parameters closely monitored and compared.
Daniel Ishag, Founder & CEO of Bluewater Bio International commented: “This award, with one of the UK’s largest utility companies, renowned for its robust R&D focus, represents our first framework deal in the UK. To be selected after undergoing such vigorous testing and validation at their Cambridge facility is further testament to the value proposition that we hope to replicate with many other water companies around the world.”

“With stricter discharge consents coming into force, BwB is well placed to capture a significant proportion of Anglian’s tertiary filtration upgrades as a result of both the positive trial and the framework itself. I look forward to working with the Anglian team and their delivery partners to meet these consents.”

Bluewater Bio acquired Glasgow-based FilterClear’s innovative suite of high performance filtration technologies in September 2011, attracted by its key differentiators of class-leading throughput rate and solids retention, high dirt holding capacity and low volume of backwash waste. In addition, the small footprint, minimum civil works, quick on-site installation and minimal operational intervention gives the end user a lower whole life cost over the life of an asset.

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Bluewater Bio, a leading provider of innovative high-performance, cost-effective water and wastewater treatment technologies, is pleased to announce that it has secured a third order for its low energy nutrient removal technology, HYBACS®. The project, valued at 24 million South African Rand (c. £1.75m) and secured via Bluewater Bio’s licensing agreement with Headstream Water Holdings, is for the extension of Hartbeesfontein Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP), owned and operated by the City of Matlosana Local Municipality in North West Province, South Africa.

The HYBACS upgrade has been designed to double the plant capacity from 4 to 8 megalitres / day, an uplift of around 60,000 Population Equivalent, and is driven primarily by increased load from a local abattoir.  The first project phase, which is already under construction, comprises the deployment of six SMART™ units, the system that powers the HYBACS process.
Having already experienced the high quality treatment capability, low energy and maintenance costs, small footprint and rapid deployment of HYBACS on their Botleng and Swartruggens projects,  BwB was the natural choice for Moedi Consulting Engineers when engaged by the Matlosana municipality at Hartbeesfontein.

Hartbeesfontein represents BwB’s third order for HYBACS in South Africa in as many years, and marks the Company’s largest contract award within the region to date. Combined with the four SMART units already performing to high standards at the Botleng and Swartruggens plants, this latest order will bring the total African installed base to ten. In anticipation of future population growth, civil engineering works have already been prepared at Hartbeesfontein for an additional two SMART units and two more are under construction for deployment by Headstream to satisfy increasing market demand for rental units.

Daniel Ishag, Founder and CEO of Bluewater Bio International commented: “We are very pleased to have secured our third order, via Headstream, for the Hartbeesfontein wastewater treatment plant. With many regions of Africa in urgent need of wastewater upgrades and extensions, Bluewater Bio’s solution, with its superior economics and energy savings compared to conventional Activated Sludge, is ideally placed to serve this crucial social and political need.”

“Thanks to all involved, from BwB’s own team to Headstream and Moedi, we have now doubled our footprint within South Africa; further fuelling the global roll-out of BwB’s full product platform, from HYBACS and FilterClear to our latest UV solution.”

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Bluewater Bio, a leading provider of innovative high-performance, cost-effective water and wastewater treatment technologies, is pleased to announce that it has entered into a licensing agreement with NeoTech Aqua Solutions, Inc. (“NeoTech”) to market their ultra- efficient, highly advanced UV technologies to industrial and municipal clients. The license is global, with exclusive territory rights that include the UK and Ireland.

BwB believe there is an excellent growth market for efficient UV technology in territories that they or their partners currently operate in. The key drivers for UV adoption are primarily its ability to disinfect harmful pathogens in potable water, including Cryptosporidium and E.coli, and the conscious effort to move away from using chlorine for safety and environmental reasons. Major catalysts for UV market growth are cost, water scarcity, public health, demand for high purity process water, reuse/recycling and environmental compliance.

NeoTech, based in San Diego, California, USA, have already proven their patented ultra-efficient UV technology in over 300 installations; selling into the food & beverage, bottled water, pharmaceutical, pools & water parks, microelectronics, wastewater, remediation, and municipal drinking water markets – both for disinfection and for the elimination of organic contaminants (TOC).

NeoTech’s UV technology utilises a patented chamber design combined with ReFleX™ technology which reflects over 99% of the UV generated back into the treated water, continuously until the target contaminant is destroyed.  By comparison, conventional UV systems typically reflect only about a quarter of the UV generated.  NeoTech’s technical advantages eliminate most of the electrical power and number of lamps required to treat a given volume of water, translating to lower operating costs, a 75% smaller footprint, less lamp and

sleeve maintenance, and a unique ability to remain powered on even if water flow is interrupted. Furthermore, NeoTech’s UV systems may be mounted in any configuration and no tools are required for lamp replacement.

BwB, established in 2007 to develop their patented HYBACS® process, have since seen their product portfolio grow to include FilterClear™, a high performance multimedia filtration technology, and GHG-Tox®, an innovative nitrification and greenhouse gas monitoring system. NeoTech aligns perfectly with BwB’s technology aggregation strategy; developing a global mid-market platform for innovative, high performance, low cost water and wastewater treatment products. Whilst each of these solutions can deliver significant performance improvements in isolation, their commercial benefits to municipal and industrial users are even more compelling when combined.
For example, Bluewater Bio’s FilterClear™ range of high performance filtration technologies achieves world class performance; removing particulates from clean water and wastewater in both municipal and industrial settings.  Neotech UV and FilterClear™ together are ideal complementary technologies for ultra-efficient filtration and subsequent disinfection.

NeoTech’s President/CEO, Stephen Dunham said: “The NeoTech team welcomes the opportunity to move forward globally in cooperation with Bluewater Bio.  The synergistic advantages of leveraging BlueWater Bio’s existing technology, global footprint and corporate assets with NeoTech’s unique technological strengths in UV renders a new, multi-faceted capability that will benefit both companies and particularly the market at large.  This is an exciting time of expansion for our respective technologies.”

Daniel Ishag, Founder & CEO of Bluewater Bio International commented: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank both teams for their effort in bringing this deal to fruition. As we look to increase our product platform and service the needs of our ever increasing customer base, this deal signifies an important step in realising that aim. We aspire to be the world’s leading independent water technology provider.  I strongly believe that, with Neotech onboard, we are ever closer to achieving this.”

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Bluewater Bio International, the provider of high-performance and highly cost-effective water and wastewater treatment technologies, has been invited to join Prime Minister, David Cameron, and Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change, Greg Barker, on the UK Government’s trade mission to India between 17th and 21st February 2013.

The invitation, which BwB is delighted to have accepted, comes just a few months after entering into a partnership agreement with Tatva Global Environmental Ltd, one of India’s largest environmental services conglomerates, to market BwB’s compact, high throughput, low energy filtration product – FilterClear™.

Under the agreement Tatva Global Environmental Ltd (“Tatva”) will not only market the FilterClear technology but also take responsibility for the local assembly and integration of product supplied BwB. The remit of the agreement is expected to expand beyond India, with Tatva planning to broaden its marketing into South East Asia as a whole.

The first filter vessel to be ordered under this partnership has already been delivered to the Nirlon Science and Knowledge Park’s ‘green campus’ in Mumbai’s western suburbs. FilterClear is being incorporated by Tatva into an 840 m3/day water reuse system, valued at £170,000, for this ground-breaking eco-development centred around a 200,000 sq ft traffic-free central park. (www.nirlonltd.com/green_campus.html )

This initial order at Nirlon gives BwB a foothold in a water and wastewater equipment market valued at INR 102 billion (£1.2 billion) by 2016, with a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 10.1 per cent1. In addition to FilterClear, BwB is seeking commercial and academic partners in India with whom to roll-out its growing technology portfolio, which also includes HYBACS® (HYbrid ACtivated Sludge) and GHG-Tox (nitrification & greenhouse gas monitoring).

Together, Bluewater Bio and Tatva are ideally positioned to share in India’s increasing prosperity, with population growth, expanding disposable incomes and changing lifestyles predicted to double1 the demand for water by 2050. Water supply, irrigation and sanitation are central to India’s emergence as a global commercial powerhouse, accounting for 17 per cent of spending under the Government’s 12th five year plan (2011) 1.

Trade and Investment Minister Lord Green said: “We are on track to double our trade with India by 2015. India has the potential to become one of the largest markets in the world. Bluewater Bio are rightly recognising that they can reap the rewards of looking outside Europe for trading partners, selling goods and services to high growth markets outside the EU.”

“Government is clear that we must build deeper ties with India. This means supporting and encouraging a range of companies, both large and small, to do business there in the future, and I am delighted that Bluewater Bio are part of the delegation for this trip.”

Bluewater Bio was established in the UK in early 2007 and has rapidly grown to employ a commercial and engineering team of 30, in London and Glasgow, plus an indirect workforce of up to 300 – including a large contractor base on the Tubli Bay sewage plant upgrade in Bahrain.

BwB currently funds two PhD students in water sciences at Cranfield University and runs an apprenticeship scheme at its London office.
Over 95% of BwB’s equipment is UK sourced, from a network of more than 20 small, traditional engineering firms – centred largely around the country’s manufacturing heartland in the West Midlands.

BwB’s support to UK manufacturing is underpinned by a market-leading R&D programme, sponsoring technology development in the UK within Severn Trent Water, Thames Water, Anglian Water, and Scottish Water. Through its Water Innovate team, the tech transfer business acquired from Cranfield University in September 2010, BwB is committed to the continuous improvement of its core products, the development of new water and wastewater innovations and the identification of third party technologies for potential acquisition or licensing.

Jai Shroff, owner and MD of Tatva Global Environmental, commented:  “We at Tatva are very pleased to add Bluewater Bio’s technologies to our suite of environmental solutions in our continued efforts to be at the forefront of technology leadership in the environment industry. We expect to add substantial value to our clients by offering a technology which out-performs existing solutions on a host of parameters.”

Daniel Ishag, CEO of BwB, concluded: “This high level delegation to India is another major milestone for Bluewater Bio as we expand our global coverage. We are delighted not only to have found a partner of Tatva’s scale and reputation for our first foray into India, but also to be commissioning our first joint installation at an eco-development like the Nirlon Knowledge Park. Building on that flagship foundation we have already identified an ongoing pipeline in India of 12 potential projects with a combined sales value, for the FilterClear component, of approximately £6 million.”

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