Water. Desalination + reuse
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BUSINESS | 12 | Desalination & Water Reuse | May-June 2015 coRpoRate changes Caption 3M BUyS PolyPorE IN US$ 1 BIllIoN DEAl Multinational conglomerate, 3M, has signed an agreement to buy the Separations Media business of membrane specialist, Polypore International, for US$ 1billion cash. Polypore's Separations Media business manufactures microporous membranes and modules for filtration in the life sciences, industrial and specialty segments. Its sales for the year to September 2014 were US$ 210 million. Filtration was a "priority technology platform," according to 3M. "Polypore's Separations Media business is an outstanding business that will expand our opportunities in many large and attractive segments," said 3M chairman, president and chief executive officer Inge G Thulin. According to 3M, Polypore's Separations Media business will add new technology to complement 3M's existing filtration business in life sciences, industrial, water treatment, electronics and foodservice. "The acquisition of this ultrafiltration membrane technology will enhance 3M's core filtration platform and help generate new growth opportunities across the company," said Thulin. The addition of the Polypore business will, according to 3M industrial business group executive vice president, Michael F Roman, enable 3M to: "Offer a broader array of products to both Polypore's and 3M's customers, which will accelerate the global growth of our membrane business." Centerview Partners acted as financial advisor to 3M. ABENgoA SIgNS A DESAlINAtIoN rESEArch PArtNErShIP IN ABU DhABI Energy sustainability company Abengoa has formed a research partnership with the Masdar Institute and the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar company) to optimize membrane distillation technology for the treatment of reverse osmosis brines. The study aims to improve the water recovery and productivity of seawater reverse osmosis plants, while reducing the volume of brine discharge, to increase the sustainability of the desalination process. As part of the work Abengoa is developing a seawater reverse osmosis pilot scale project at Ghantoot city, at Abu Dhabi's border with Dubai. This 1,000 m³/d pilot plant will use a hybrid system of reverse osmosis combined with an innovative membrane distillation system. Abengoa said the research partnership would consolidate its commitment to research and development in the water sector to improve the performance of existing products and the development of new technologies. FrANcE AND KUwAIt StrIKE SolAr DESAlINAtIoN UNDErStANDINg At AZ ZoUr INAUgUrAtIoN French foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, and his Kuwaiti counterpart, Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. have signed a memo of understanding for implementing a project for water desalination using solar energy. The two sides sealed the commitment at the recent inauguration of the Az Zour reverse osmosis desalination plant, 100 km south of Kuwait City, when Fabius congratulated Kuwait and his country's water technology giant Veolia for their co-operation in completing the project which began operation in July last year. The 136,000 m³/d plant has upped the output on the Az Zour site to 660,00 m³/d - an increase of 26%. Veolia constructed the plant under a five-year design build operate deal signed in 2011 with Kuwait's ministry of electricity and water, in partnership with Al Ghanim International. The plant uses seawater discharged from the cooling system of an adjacent power station. The increased temperature of the water compared with normal seawater, reduces operating costs according to Veolia. IDE UPS ItS ExPANSIoN INto thE US IDE Technologies has furthered its expansion in the US with a new office in Texas headed up by newly appointed regional director of sales, Mark Ellison. Ellison worked for over 20 years with local, state and federal agencies and the industry on water-related projects in Texas and was manager of strategic water initiatives for former Texas governor Rick Perry. He is "well-positioned to increase awareness and sales throughout Texas of IDE's water desalination and industrial water treatment solutions," said IDE. IDE Americas' chief executive officer, Mark Lambert, highlighted the "challenging stage" of Texas' water resources after years of "significant drought conditions and "more than one thousand people moving to Texas every day. "By entering this key market, IDE is set to help meet this need through seawater desalination and water treatment projects, and Mark is the perfect person to drive these efforts. He understands the water market and knows the problems, and we're excited for him to join our team," said Lambert. "I have a strong history of experience with the water, agricultural and environmental issues in my home state of Texas," said. Ellison. "I look forward to helping expand IDE's presence and meet the needs of customers across all regions of the state," he added. AccIoNA PrEDIctS MININg SUrgE IN chIlE wIll FUEl DESAlINAtIoN growth Spanish clean energy and water company, Acciona, has forecast a surge in demand for desalination plants in Chile as the country's copper mining industry expands. "It's going to take off," Acciona director in Chile and Peru, Diego Pini told news agency Bloomberg. He said the company planned to bid on contracts to build municipal desalination plants to supply cities with potable water and to supply Chile's copper mines. The growing demand will be fuelled by new mining projects and government contracts to supply desalinated water amid a fifth year of drought, Pini said. He predicted "intensive use of desalination in the north of Chile." US-MExIco FINANcEr BAcKS DESAlINAtIoN FIrSt The North American Development Bank has provided a US$ 22 million loan to South Korean company, GS Inima Environment, which is building a US$ 48 million, 28.5 Ml/d reverse osmosis desalination plant in Ensenada, Mexico. The loan was the bank's first financing provision for a desalination plant. The plant will be an important new source of water for the city, whose residents have been struggling with water shortages. Ensenada is the only municipality in Baja California that is not