Cambrian Innovation, a commercial provider of distributed wastewater-treatment and resource-recovery solutions for industrial facilities, announced today that it is offering a novel water-energy purchase agreement (WEPA) - a new form of financing that it’s calling the wastewater industry’s answer to solar’s power purchasing agreements (PPAs) – and that Lagunitas Brewing Company will be the first to use it.
Under the WEPA, a first for the industrial wastewater treatment industry, Cambrian will leverage its energy-positive EcoVolt product suite to bring Lagunitas onsite wastewater treatment and renewable energy generation as a service. At zero money down, and with Cambrian monetizing all environmental benefits, the WEPA is slated to save the brewery a projected $22.5 million over its lifecycle.
“One of the most instrumental aspects of solar energy’s widespread adoption was the introduction of renewable power as a service, which allows customers to purchase solar electricity rather than solar panels. The WEPA is akin to solar’s PPA, helping industrial producers generate renewable resources from their wastewater streams with zero money down and zero ownership and operational risk,” said Cambrian Innovation Founder and CEO Matthew Silver. “The WEPA will help Cambrian Innovation reach more customers and provide higher benefits, in support of our vision to reshape the industrial water infrastructure of the 21st century.”
Lagunitas has been using Cambrian’s EcoVolt solution for onsite wastewater treatment, water reuse and clean energy recovery at its facility in Petaluma, CA since 2014. Now, with the addition of the WEPA, Lagunitas’s newest Azusa brewery, slated to open in early 2018, will be capable of producing an estimated 300,000 gallons of recycled water per day; over 2,300,000 kWh per year of gross renewable electricity; and 130,000 therms per year of gross renewable heat, for a monthly fee. As the brewery increases production at the Azusa facility to over one million barrels per year, it will look to Cambrian to treat increased wastewater flows through the installation of additional EcoVolt modules.
“We are in an exciting time at Lagunitas. The new brewery at Azusa and the addition of an EcoVolt solution will allow us to expand our production capacity and keep up with demand,” said Lagunitas CFO Leon Sharyon. “With the WEPA, we’re able to maintain our high level of commitment to sustainable water and energy use, while decreasing our utility costs. Cambrian will be our partner in managing wastewater treatment, allowing us to focus all of our time and energy on what we love most — brewing beer.”
To date, Cambrian’s EcoVolt solutions have been used in conjunction with the beer and wine industries to treat 15,000,000 gallons of wastewater and reclaim 3,000,000 gallons of recycled water, while producing renewable energy for onsite use, dramatically reducing CO2 emissions. As drought becomes more acute in key markets, the company believes that the WEPA will help industrial water users stabilize monthly operational costs amidst growing water market volatility. This first WEPA deal with Lagunitas represents a powerful model for the food and beverage industry to continue to scale while becoming more resilient to uncertain water market conditions in the future.
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Published Dec 6, 2016 10pm EST / 7pm PST / 3am GMT / 4am CET