News – Water Breakthrough Challenge
September 5, 2023
In this challenge, Ofwat are calling on water companies to propose bold and innovative projects to tackle some of the water sector’s biggest challenges.
Update: Entries are now closed for the Water Breakthrough Challenge 4 (‘Breakthrough 4’), with assessments now underway.
To date, Ofwat’s £200 million Innovation Fund has awarded more than £105 million to projects across England and Wales that are pioneering solutions to improve the water sector’s environmental impact – from the transition to net zero to tackling leaks and spills – and to transform services for consumers.
Since 2020, the Water Breakthrough Challenges have seen water companies form new cross-sector collaborations with gas and electric utility providers, universities, charities, SMEs, tech giants, local governments and community organisations.
Previous winners have included robots that patrol water and wastewater pipes to pinpoint cracks, carbon capture technology to convert CO2 into household products, seagrass meadow restoration off the Welsh coast, and projects to power city buses with gas extracted from sewage.
Ofwat will award up to £40m to even more daring and forward-thinking partnerships led by water companies in Water Breakthrough Challenge 4. It encourages entrants to think bigger than ever before and will favour entrants with the greatest focus on generating and sharing knowledge across and beyond the water sector and those rolling out successful innovations.
“There are many challenges that the water sector needs to overcome in the next decade. They include the widely reported issues like leakage rates and sewage discharge into rivers. They also include less well-known challenges, like transitioning an industry that uses 3% of the country’s electricity to net zero while contending with the impacts of climate change and ensuring better quality services for customers.”
“While it is our job as a regulator to hold water companies to account when they do not meet their obligations, we also want to incentivise water companies to accelerate innovative ideas that drive positive changes for the environment and consumers. Water Breakthrough Challenge 4 is calling for even bolder initiatives and will reward collaborations that generate and share knowledge, and roll out successful innovations.”
As in previous rounds, Breakthrough 4 has two entry streams:
Catalyst stream
~£10 million available
Entries bidding for £150,000 – £2 million
Closed 3 January 2024
Transform stream
~£30 million available
Entries bidding for £2 – 10 million
Stage 1 closed 19 October 2023; Stage 2 closing 10 January 2024
Partnerships must be led by water companies in England or Wales, including NAVs. Entrants must commit to contributing an additional 10% of the project value submitted in their bid.
Entries should respond to one or more of the fund’s innovation themes:
Water Breakthrough Challenge 4 is designed and delivered with open innovation competition experts Challenge Works and sustainable design, engineering and technology experts Arup and Isle Utilities.
For more information about the Water Breakthrough Challenge, including details of previous winners and how to enter, visit waterinnovation.challenges.org
