With expert construction and maintenance of water infrastructure —at no upfront cost — WaaS® delivers
When it comes to building municipal water infrastructure, there’s a flaw built into traditional infrastructure delivery. Once contractors are finished building and commissioning plants, their involvement typically ends there.
In the coming years, the municipality will be responsible for repairing aging equipment, handling operations and maintenance for technically demanding processes, complying with regulations, and training and maintaining staff amid a labor shortage in the water workforce.
There’s a better way. Seven Seas Water Group’s Water-as-a-Service® (Waas®) approach provides a superior solution for municipalities seeking reliable, clean water infrastructure. WaaS® is a comprehensive, collaborative, long-term water management partnership under which Seven Seas removes many of the burdens that otherwise would fall to the customer. WaaS® handles design, financing, engineering, construction, and even long-term operations and maintenance, bringing all aspects of projects under one roof to streamline infrastructure delivery.
Municipalities pay a predetermined bill for water treatment at a guaranteed price, volume, and quality. No surprises.
Benefits of WaaS® for Municipalities
What are some of the specific ways that WaaS® is poised to help municipalities and water authorities?
- Financial efficiency: WaaS® removes the need for significant capital expenditures. Seven Seas’ integration with the powerhouse lending company moves projects forward quickly. And, regular payments are also typically determined based on water usage, so municipalities only pay for what they use.
- Expertise and experience: Since Seven Seas’ formation in 1997, we have grown as a leader and innovator in water treatment, offering a wide range of traditional technologies along with updated processes such as advanced reverse osmosis (RO) and membrane bioreactors (MBRs). Municipalities can rely on the experience of Seven Seas water professionals to operate and maintain processes and keep up with regulatory frameworks.
- Faster project completion: WaaS® streamlines project delivery as a “one-stop shop,” seamlessly integrating all of the aspects of asset delivery under one roof.
- Reduced risk: Seven Seas owns and operates its water assets under BOO and BOOT contracts, so the financial risk is on us. Because we own assets and are responsible for operating and maintaining them over the long run, we’re motivated to use the most durable, reliable equipment from our extensive supplier network. Compare our peerless track record of 98.7% plant availability to any water company, anywhere.
- Innovation and sustainability: While the advanced water treatment technologies of today deliver high efficiency, they do come with higher technical demands. WaaS® allows municipalities to leverage our knowledge and reap the benefits of advanced technologies such as reverse osmosis desalination without committing their own organizational resources. With the ability to use previously unusable water sources such as brackish aquifers, a municipality can address water scarcity and ensure long-term water security in a meaningful way. Seven Seas also holds GRESB’s top five-star rating with a score of 100/100, making WaaS® an ESG star.
Real-World Examples of WaaS® Success
Seven Seas has been successfully partnering with municipalities across the United States. Here are some examples:
Alice, Texas: The drought-prone city of Alice, Texas, needed a reliable source of raw fresh water for its treatment plants. It had run short of funding to complete a stalled brackish water desalination plant designed to tap the aquifer below the city, but Seven Seas was able to step in, agreeing to complete the project at no upfront cost. Under the contract, WaaS® also assumed all long-term O&M and guaranteed treatment of 2.7 million GPD of fresh water at a guaranteed quality.
While it might be natural to assume that a project with no cost on the front end would cost more on the back end, WaaS® actually lowered water costs for the city and guaranteed lower prices moving forward. With no cost upfront and lower costs stretching into the future, the city of Alice project shows just how dramatic the benefits of WaaS® can be. The prospect of decades of loan payments and O&M vanished, and Alice only faced the prospect of a reliable water supply and lower water bills for ratepayers.
City Manager Michael Esparza explained:
This project signifies a tremendous leap forward for our community and underscores our commitment to ensuring reliable and safe water security for all of our residents.
South Texas Water Utility
Like Alice, the South Texas Water Utility in Kingsville had a brackish aquifer that, if tapped, could support rapid growth in Kleberg and Nueces Counties. Following the WaaS® model, Seven Seas will deliver a plant to produce at least 3 million GPD and scale the plant up to meet any new demand.
STWA Board President Jose Graveley said:
We are incredibly excited to bring reliable drinking water to our customers. This agreement guarantees stable water rates and a dependable water supply, which we believe will drive business investments and economic development. This Water-as-a-Service® model provides capabilities, guaranteed volume, and quality. Seven Seas will expand the capacity of the plant if demand increases.
Securing Your Community’s Water Future
With water scarcity and infrastructure challenges on the rise, WaaS® offers municipalities a compelling solution to secure pure water for their ratepayers. By partnering with Seven Seas, municipalities receive what is essentially a dedicated water utility for decades to come. Prices remain low and quality remains high under performance-based contracts, and city drinking water is handled by the most trusted experts in the business. WaaS® is the fast track to long-term water security. Contact Seven Seas to see how we can help secure reliable, clean water for your community.
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