Aqwise signs cooperation agreement with Mekorot to field-test biological treatment system for drinking water

Aqwise, a Herzliya, Israel-based provider of advanced solutions for wastewater treatment, has signed a cooperation agreement with Mekorot, Israel's national water company, for field-testing an innovative technology for biological treatment of nitrate contamination in drinking water.

The agreement was signed in the framework of WaTech, Mekorot’s entrepreneurship and partnership center for water technologies.

Aqwise has recently begun developing innovative solutions for contaminants removal from drinking water. According to the company, these solutions are based on the unique technology and extensive knowledge that were achieved in the company in the field of biological treatment of wastewater, through the development and implementation of its moving-bed technology, AGAR (Attached Growth Airlift Reactor) process, utilizing biomass carriers.

Nitrate is one of the most common contaminants of groundwater in the world and originates in agricultural fertilization, cesspits and dairy farming. Tens of thousands of wells in the US and in Europe contain Nitrate concentrations that exceed permitted standards. As a result, a significant part of the wells is closed and millions of cubes of potential drinking water are not being used.

Elad Frenkel, CEO of Aqwise, commented “The company engages in constant research and development of innovative technologies for wastewater treatment and is glad to penetrate the drinking water treatment field, thus significantly expending its potential target market. Cost-effective groundwater contamination treatment has a great importance, especially nowadays, when the global water crisis becomes severe. The cooperation with 'Mekorot' is strategic for the company”.

Mekorot CEO Ido Rosilio said, "The collaboration with Aqwise will help Mekorot find an effective and environmentally friendly solution for treating contaminants in drinking water. This solution can help return tens of thousands of cubic meters of clean water to Israel's water reservoirs."

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AqWise to supply technology to wastewater treatment facility in Israel

Israeli wastewater treatment company AqWise - Wise Water Technologies Ltd. will integrate its AGAR® technology into a major wastewater treatment facility to be built in the Golan Heights.

Situated near Kibbutz Meitzar, the new wastewater treatment plant is designed to serve 13 rural communities, many of them with special farming and live-stock enterprises, requiring treatment capacity for highly polluted wastewater.

According to a company press release, the AqWise solution will enable the new plant to effectively address the challenge of inflow peaks, associated with regional conditions, and allow gradual project scalability so as to adapt wastewater treatment capacities to the anticipated regional growth.

AqWise reportedly beat out other companies from Scandinavia and the United States that are developing similar biofilm process technologies to treat wastewater.

AqWise CEO Elad Frenkel said, "What is singularly important here is the fact that AqWise's technology enables the facility to be built with a certain capacity now, in response to existing needs, and then upgraded at a later stage without having to carry out further engineering work. The facility will have an initial capacity of 2,500 cubic meters of treated water a day, and this will be increased to 5,000 cubic meters of treated water a day, as required."

AqWise marketing manager Ud Shani added, "This project is important, not just technologically and environmentally, but also politically. Until now, the Jordan River was exposed to contamination through sewage, and this brought us and the Jordanians to the brink of a crisis. The new facility will solve this problem."

Following a secondary transaction in January that valued the AqWise at $10 million, Mexican mining conglomerate Altos Hornos de Mexico SA de CV, owns 55% of the company, Elron Electronic Industries Ltd. owns 34%, and Israel Cleantech Ventures owns 11%.

Last year, "The Cleantech Revolution" named AqWise as one of the top 10 companies to watch in the field of water filtration.

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Israeli water technology in the news

What follows are links to a few recently published articles related to Israeli water companies and technologies.

Interview with AqWise CEO Elad Frenkel

AqWise last month raised $3.6 million to support its growth plans, which center on its AGAR (Attached Growth Airlift Reactor) technology and ecological water sanitation process for municipal, industrial and aquaculture wastewater treatment. In this interview, CEO Elad Frenkel discusses the global wastewater market and Aqwise's prospects.

"Stream Control" takes the pressure off water pipes

Stream Control, a graduate of the Yozmot HaEmek technological incubator, has developed a device called the Aquaguard Smart Pressure Reduction Controller, designed to ensure proper flow of water through municipal pipes, thus preventing leaks and saving both water and money.

CEO Shlomo Avitbul discusses the company in this article on Israel21c. "We just finished a major project in Jerusalem's old city, where our installations reduced leakage by 35%," Avitbul says, adding that the product is set to be deployed in a number of other cities in Israel in the coming months. The company is also working on several deals in Europe - specifically Spain, Germany, and Italy.

New technique adds magnesium to desalinated water

Technion researcher Dr. Ori Lahav has developed a new technique that cheaply introduces healthful magnesium ions to desalinated water. In a few months, a semi-industrial plant will be set up adjacent to the small desalination plant at Kibbutz Ma'agan Michael to try out the process in the field. It is expected to supply 400 to 1,000 cubic meters of mineral-enriched desalinated water per day. The new process will be presented at the upcoming conference of the Israel Water Association.

Dr. Lahav is a scientific adviser to AquaPure Technologies.

Israel Cleantech buys 11% of AqWise

"Globes" reports that Israel Cleantech Ventures has acquired an 11% stake in sewage treatment solutions developer AqWise - Wise Water Technologies Ltd. from its founders, Ronen Shechter and Eytan Levy, in a secondary transaction in a deal that valued the company at $10 million.

AqWise CEO Elad Frenkel said, "This investment means that three institutional investors now stand behind the company: AHMSA, Elron, and Israel Cleantech." Mexican mining conglomerate Altos Hornos de Mexico SA de CV, owns 55% of AqWise, Elron Electronic Industries Ltd. owns 34%, and Israel Cleantech now owns 11%.

Globes says that this will not be Israel Cleantech's final investment in AqWise, which is in the late stages of an internal financial financing round amounting to a few million dollars from its current investors. The company is also close to signing contracts worth several million dollars with customers in Israel, Europe, the US, and Latin America.

"Globes": Do you plan to raise capital from external sources?

Frenkel: "Elron is a strategic investor, not merely a financial one. Israel Cleantech and AHMSA are also both strategic investors. That's why we don’t need outside money right now. They want to stand behind the company and make it succeed."

AqWise was founded in 2000. It specializes in the upgrading of wastewater treatment plants through the Attached Growth Airlift Reactor (AGAR) process, a method for biologically increasing water treatment capacity using biofilm carriers. The company posted a fourth quarter loss after posting profits in the preceding quarters, but the company has installed dozens of commercial units around the world, and its global target market is estimated at more than a $1 billion a year, and it is growing.

In 2007, AqWise was named in "The Cleantech Revolution" as one of the top 10 companies to watch in the field of water filtration

Ronen Shechter and Eytan Levy recently founded a new microbial fuel cell company, EMEFCY Bioenergy Systems, which will focus on the production of electricity and fuel from heavy duty industrial waste. Levy is also a venture partner at Israel Cleantech Ventures.