This year’s Global Water Awards winners were announced in a ceremony held in Paris. The awards acknowledge the most important achievements in the international water industry within several categories. The guest of honour this year’s awards ceremony was her Excellency Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of Liberia and Nobel Laureate.
Desalination Plant of the Year Sorek SWRO plant The Sorek plant in Israel is the country’s largest seawater desalination plant, with a total contracted capacity of 150 million m3 per year and a maximum daily capacity of 624,000 m3 per day. The project was developed on a 25-year BOT basis by Sorek Desalination Ltd, a partnership between IDE Technologies (51%) and Hutchison Water (49%). Dow Filmtec and Hydranautics supplied the membranes, and the plant employs Calder’s DWEER energy recovery devices, supplied by Flowserve. Desalination Company of the Year Qatar Electricity & Water Company The company is the largest power and water developer in Qatar, holding a desal portfolio with a total capacity of 1.65 million m3 per day. QEWC is majority government-owned, with a portion of its shares traded on the Qatar Exchange. It formalised its international water ambitions in 2013, launching the $1 billion Nebras Power Company, in which it will hold a 60% stake, to invest in power generation and desal opportunities overseas. In Qatar, financial close was achieved on a complex deal for the 163,656 m3 per dayRas Abu Fontas A2 IWP. Water Reuse Project of the Year Big Spring Raw Water Production Facility This groundbreaking reuse facility in the USA has a design capacity of 2.5 MGD (9,462 m3 per day) and was commissioned in April 2013. Although the purified effluent is blended with reservoir water, the process is classified as direct potable reuse (DPR) since it does not employ an environmental buffer. Colorado River Municipal Water District (CRMWD) contracted Freese& Nichols to design the plant, and CSA Construction for the construction element. Tertiary effluent from the Big Spring WWTP is run through Pall Microza MF and Toray RO membranes before undergoing advanced oxidation treatment using a system supplied by Trojan UV. Industrial Water Project of the Year Permian Basin ZLD
This USA project is the first commercial carrier gas extraction (CGE) unit to treat produced water from the oil and gas industry in the Permian Basin. The 4,000 bbl per day plant treats hypersaline produced water from gas wells, with zero liquid discharge. The plant was designed and is operated under a long-term contract by Gradiant Corporation, an MIT spin-out and the 2013 Technology Idol, which commercialized the CGE technology. The plant is operated in collaboration with unconventional oil and gas giant Pioneer Natural Resources.
Water Company of the Year GE Water & Process Technologies Over the past seven years, GE Water has transformed itself into the most formidable industrial water company in the world, positioned at the centre of the water-energy nexus. In 2013, it was arguably the most successful water company in the business, advancing its activities on all fronts, while many of its competitors struggled. Water Technology Company of the Year Oasys Water A Boston-based start-up specialising in forward osmosis (FO) technologies developed at Yale University, particularly for industrial applications. Oasys launched into the global market in 2013, securing high-profile deals, obtaining eight new patents, and doubling staff. Commercially proven in 2012 as a means of treating oil shale produced water from the Permian Basin, Oasys’ membrane brine concentrator (MBC) technology operates at a recovery of up to 85% on feedwater that can be five times more saline than seawater. Desal Deal of the Year Victorian Desalination Project (VDP) refinancing This deal represents the multi-stage A$3.7 billion (US$3.3 billion) refinancing of project debt originally taken out in 2009 to fund the 411,000 m3 per day VDP construction. The refinancing enabled the project company to repay expensive debt negotiated at the height of the global financial crisis and extend maturities significantly, while opening up the financing of Australian water infrastructure to new investor bases in the Australian and US bond markets. The VDP was established under a 30-year PPP agreement between the State Government and the AquaSure consortium. The 2014 winners were chosen by votes cast by subscribers to WDR and GWI, and by members of the IDA. (Source: desalination.com)
