WWT Boost for South Africa

Bluewater Bio International has completed installation of its HYBACS process at the Botleng wastewater treatment plant in South Africa. The plant, serving 17,000 residents, is now operational and producing a high-quality effluent. The project is expected to cost around 55 million Rand (c. £5 million) when a second phase extension will bring the treatment capacity to a total of 7,000m3.The project, secured via Bluewater Bio’s licensing agreement with Headstream Water Holdings, was for the extension to the Botleng Sewage Treatment Plant which was overloaded and in need of additional capacity. The extension, situated alongside the existing Botleng plant, is provided by a new 3,500m³ per day treatment plant including two SMART (Shaft Mounted Advanced Reactor Technology) units. The nutrient removal plant treats municipalwastewater with Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), ammonia and Total Phosphorus (TP) concentrations of c. 600mg/l, 45 mg/l and 6 mg/l, respectively.

 As the new HYBACS plant at Botleng nears the end of its biological commissioning phase, sampling indicates the treated effluent is a very high quality and exceeding the stringent discharge standards required.

The Botleng Wastewater Treatment Plant services the town of Delmas in the Mpumulanga Province. Delmas lies 60 km east of Johannesburg and has a population of approximately 92,000. Botleng is one of two wastewatertreatment plants (WTPs) in the town, the other being the Delmas town WTP. These sewage treatment facilities have to produce effluents that comply with the specifications of the relevant authorities, which include nutrient removal. The HYBACS process is ideally suited to a modular scale up and the new Botleng HYBACS plant has been designed to enable a cost effective second phase extension to 7,000m³ per day, should the additional capacity be required as a result of the rapid expansion of the town.

 The HYBACS process, with its high-quality, modular treatment capability and lower energy consumption, was an ideal solution for the upgrade and expansion of these WTPs to provide the additional capacity needed and to ensure the plants comply with the required effluent specifications.

 Daniel Ishag, CEO of Bluewater Bio, said: “We are delighted to have implemented the first deployment of our HYBACS technology in South Africa through our exclusive licensing agreement with Headstream Water Holdings. We have, in the meantime, secured a second order in the country for a plant which is currently in construction at Swartruggens, a town about 60 miles North West of Johannesburg. We are working closely with Headstream to secure our third order, also near Johannesburg, along with additional sales prospects in both South Africa and its neighbouring countries.”