Exclusive interview: H2O Global News’ Sion Geschwindt spoke with Seven Seas Water CEO, Michael Noone, to discuss the company’s innovative Water-as-a-Service® approach to water and wastewater treatment and provision.
Seven Seas Water is a multinational developer, owner and operator of water and wastewater treatment plants and businesses. The company has grown rapidly, from a small enterprise based in the US Virgin Islands, Caribbean, to a trusted supplier and service provider of water treatment technologies delivering 18 billion gallons of water annually through 12 water treatment facilities, and with an average plant availability rate of 97%.
Crucial to the company’s success has been its Water-as-a-Service® approach that offers clients an all-inclusive service package with no upfront capital investment. Seven Seas Water acquires or builds custom desalination, advanced water, wastewater treatment, and water reuse services, and covers all operational, technical, and maintenance costs and responsibilities. Clients pay for the water produced and delivered. This model allows governmental, private, and industrial customers, in areas where water sources may be scarce, to acquire treatment services quickly and affordably – getting water to where it is needed most.
Seven Seas Water Desalination Facility in Trinidad & Tobago
In one recent case, the government of Trinidad & Tobago was struggling to provide its citizens with adequate freshwater supplies amid severe drought conditions. Seven Seas Water was contracted by the Water & Sewerage Authority of Trinidad & Tobago (WASA) to construct a permanent desalination facility, the first phase of which took just 14 months to build and produced 1.5 million gallons per day (MGD). The facility has recently expanded to a capacity of 6.7 (MGD), bringing water to areas that previously had no reliable supply.
The Water-as-a-Service® model has been so successful that the company has expanded beyond the Caribbean to South America, and plans to deliver its solution globally. Seven Seas Water has developed an excellent reputation for safe, reliable, and efficient delivery of clean water to the communities they serve. The company also makes giving back a vital part of its culture. This creates public confidence in Seven Seas Water and solutions that might otherwise struggle to gain momentum, such as wastewater reuse.
Wastewater reuse, or ‘recycling’, has struggled to gain popularity because consumers often don’t trust that the end product is safe to consume. However, Seven Seas Water and its wastewater subsidiary, AUC Group, have shown its customers that reusing wastewater is in fact a safe solution that can significantly increase water availability in a cost-effective manner. A wastewater treatment plant located in Austin, Texas, for example, produces clean water from a nearby hotel and business to irrigate the surrounding area. The ability to reuse the wastewater supports water conservation and reduces the cost of irrigation.
Water reuse plant in Austin, Texas
“We make clean water, and we want to make more of it. We are proud of our reputation of providing safe, reliable and efficient clean water to the communities we serve,” said Michael Noone, CEO of Seven Seas Water. “Having an excellent reputation, building trust and demonstrating legitimacy with the public helps create a positive view of this needed solution.”
By expanding water reuse and other water treatment technologies such as desalination, Seven Seas Water is helping to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As an operator of often carbon-intensive infrastructure such as desalination plants, Seven Seas Water also have a responsibility to reduce its carbon footprint.
“We are engaged in a 3-year carbon efficiency initiative, that includes the assessment of replacing fossil fuel powered vehicles, installation of solar panels to power equipment, and aligning waste recycling programs to greenhouse gas protocols; as part of a strong company-wide environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitment,” said Michael Noone.
Delivering safe clean water sustainably will be crucial in the years to come. Seven Seas Water and its Water-as-a-Service® model is a proven safe, affordable and reliable approach to water service provision that helps governments, industries, and companies address their urgent water provisioning needs. By creating a system that is sustainable over the long-term and addresses the SDGs, Seven Seas Water is setting the bar for water treatment solutions – not just in the Caribbean and Latin America, but the world.
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