MIT Spinoff's Microbes Turn Beer Waste Into Clean Water

A Boston-based MIT spinoff called Cambrian Innovation is offering a new program that lets businesses in the food and beverage industry — like breweries — reuse and monetize their wastewater

A Boston-based MIT spinoff called Cambrian Innovation is offering a new program that lets businesses in the food and beverage industry — like breweries — reuse and monetize their wastewater.

Cambrian Innovation on Wednesday announced a $30 million fund water-energy purchase agreement for industrial businesses to reap the benefits of onsite wastewater treatment and clean energy. Businesses can do this by paying a monthly fee based on usage, according to the terms of the purchase agreement.

The purchase agreement concept is based on the power purchase agreement that has been used in the solar industry for the past decade.

"We're taking a page out of the solar industry's book, in terms of providing access to sustainable services in a distributed way," said Cambrian Innovation's CEO Matthew Silver in an interview.

Silver said the financing model is the first of its kind.

Cambrian's flagship product is called the EcoVolt, a technology that can extract clean energy and water from wastewater with advanced biotechnology. Cambrian aims to finance, install and operate EcoVolt systems on behalf of business customers who take advantage of the water-energy purchase agreement, and sell back clean energy and clean water, according to the company.

"(Businesses) are going to be able to purchase clean water, clean energy and wastewater treatment purely as a service, and monetize, to convert what was before an environmental liability into a source of sustainability," Silver said. "They're also going to have zero operational risk."

Businesses in the food and beverage industry are the target customers of the $30 million program. Those include breweries, wineries and dairies, which are major users of water.

Cambrian Innovation employs a core team of about 25 and is backed by $11 million in investor funding since it was founded in 2006.

Silver said the company has doubled annual revenue between 2013 and 2014 and between 2014 and 2015. The company has a pipeline of about $90 million in potential projects for 2016 and 2017 combined.

The $1.7 billion water technology industry in Massachusetts is robust and growing, with about 100 innovative companies in the Bay State.

Source: Boston Business Journal

Read More Related Content On This Topic - Click Here