Waste water treatment technology company AqWise Water Technologies Ltd. will supply its technology to a major waste water treatment facility to be built at Kibbutz Meizer in the southern section of the Golan Heights. The facility, which will cost NIS 20 million to build, will serve 13 local communities. AqWise's revenue from the project is unknown.
The project was put out to tender in two stages. Eight companies submitted bids in the first stage to select the technology the facility will use - a biofilm process such as the one developed by AqWise. In the second stage, AqWise beat two other companies from Scandinavia and the US that are also developing similar technologies. The facility will begin operating in 2009.
AqWise is a subsidiary of Elron Electronic Industries (Nasdaq: ELRN; TASE: ELRN).
The facility is being built by Kolhey Hagolan Ltd., the wastewater and sewage treatment arm of the Golan Heights Regional Council, which was established in 2004. The company overseeing the project design is DHV Med Ltd., and the lead contractor is Elco Contracting and Services.
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."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on August 25, 2008
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