Presentation hold during EIP Water Conference in Porto, as part of the Porto Water Innovation Week in Session 7 “The water business: Markets, opportunities and employment”

1. WATER INNOVATION: BRIDGING GAPS,
CREATING OPPORTUNITIES
27 AND 28 SEPTEMBER 2017
ALFÂNDEGA PORTO CONGRESS CENTRE
THE WATER BUSINESS: MARKETS, OPPORTUNITIES
AND EMPLOYMENT
THE VALUE OF WATER
TOMAS MICHEL
WSSTP

2. “Nearly 80% of jobs constituting the
global workforce depend on having
access to an adequate supply of
water and water related services,
including sanitation”.
Irina Bokova DG UNESCO
UN Water Report (2016):
“Water & Jobs”
The value of water: Water business
“markets, opportunities, employment”

3. The global water supply, treatment,
and distribution sector is a critical
enabler of our society:
It guarantees our food, sanitation,
health and well-being. Without it,
everything else in the € 70 trillion
global economy would fail.
We live in an fully “water dependent” economy, …
and society

5. Spain, 2008 Central America, spring 2017
Paris, 2016 Houston, USA; last month

6. Water scarcity is already a serious problem in 11% of the EU, and the
territory facing water scarcity problems is expected to grow to 30% by
2030. Apart from availability, quality will also be affected.
(Hipsey and Arheimer, 2013) in WssTP Vision: The value of Water.

7. Acknowledging the “true value” of water is a MUST,
but also a great opportunity, we cannot miss!

8. Preserve,
Improve status of,
water resources1 Save water,
Use water
efficiently2 Store water
basins,
aquifers
(Water Banks)
3
Transfer water
(between basins,
and territories)
5 Transfer water
between users
(Water Markets)
6Desalination
(sea water,
Brackish water
and brines)
4
Reuse,
Rethink,…
Water
7
WssTP Vision:
Multiple waters for
Multiple uses, and users
6+1 Strategies to serve a growing demand with finite resources

9. DIGITAL WATER
VISION 2030
MULTIPLE
Waters
Users
Uses

10. “Circular economy solutions could save
400 billon m3 of water per year”
(ING report, 2017)
• 11% of total water demand
• 100% of water consumption in the USA
by 2030 such solutions could:
• Double economic profits
• Grow average income by 11%
• Reduce associated CO2 emissions by 50%
Rethinking the water cycle…
“Global demand for water will exceed viable
resources by 40% by 2030”
(McKinsey Report, 2015)
this amount equivalent to:

11. A recent GWI report describing the relationship between water and
economic growth, confirms that industry starts to take
significant steps to cope with water shortage and sustainability
According to this report, water desalination and
regeneration technologies will become an
essential ingredient of operative industrial
strategies:
Industrial turnover of these companies will grow by
11.4% in the next 5 years, to 12.000 M$ in 2025.
Sept. 2016
Water and economic growth…

12. ESSENTIAL
Its lack can cause great economic losses:
(slowing down, or halting completely production;
or in the case water is a high % of final product)
SCARCE
Competition for the resource
Need to secure continued access/quality
Regulatory risk (LTO)
CLIMATE CHANGE
Risk assessment/mitigation
Resilience turns into competitive element
STRONG SOCIAL ISSUE
Customer opinion and choice matter!
Stewardship
Reputational risk
other important drivers (not to forget!)

13. … one more (important) element of the “real economy”
The value of Water