Royal HaskoningDHV and Anglian Water bring Net Zero digestion technology to water companies in the UK and abroad

Proven success

Every wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) produces sludge as part of the treatment process. The treatment and disposal of these biosolids is expensive, representing up to 70% of a plant’s operating costs. Responsible for processing around 150,000 tonnes of sludge per annum, Anglian Water identified an opportunity to develop a new hydrolysis technology that would maximise a plant’s biogas production from sludge. This would also reduce operating costs and the plant’s carbon footprint too. This technology is now successfully installed across four Anglian Water sludge treatment plants.

Helea provides wastewater companies with a technology that significantly increases the biogas yield over conventional digestion. At the same time, it transforms the remaining biosolids into a high-quality biosolids resource that can be utilised in agriculture as a nutrient and a soil conditioner. With these characteristics, it supports the wastewater industry to achieve its Net Zero Targets.

“Helea is a strategic addition to our already strong water technology portfolio that is aimed at challenging and supporting the water industry in its ambition for sustainability. In synergy with our existing water technologies, such as Nereda, Kaumera and Ephyra, Helea will deliver more added value for our water clients. It will also further strengthen our global leading market position in water technology,” added Niels Schallenberg, Global Director Water & Maritime at Royal HaskoningDHV.

Peter Simpson, CEO of Anglian Water said: “We are really proud to have developed this innovative, green technology at Anglian Water – it epitomises what we stand for as a business – forward thinking, environmentally conscious and always looking for better ways of doing things. We have benefitted from HpH technology over the past six years at four of our recycling centres and now, we are excited to work with Royal HaskoningDHV, leading international consulting engineers, to increase the access to this advanced technology across the UK and beyond. The advantages of Helea combined with other treatment technologies will in our experience provide significant benefits, both in process efficiency as well as cost savings and the environment.”

No financial details about the investment have been disclosed.