Ofwat announce Water Breakthrough Challenge 4

Entries are now open to Water Breakthrough Challenge 4 (‘Breakthrough 4’), with Ofwat calling on water companies to propose bold and innovative projects to tackle some of the water sector’s biggest challenges.

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 (which are delivered in partnership with Arup and Isle Utilities), 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.

As in previous rounds, Breakthrough 4 has two entry streams:

Catalyst stream

• ~£10 million available
• Entries bidding for £150,000 – £2 million
• Closing 3 January 2024

Transform stream

• ~£30 million available
• Entries bidding for £2-10 million
• Stage 1 closing 19 October 2023; Stage 2 closing 10 January 2024

For more information about the Water Breakthrough Challenge, including entry requirements and how to enter, visit waterinnovation.challenges.org