Birmingham spin-out pilots water treatment tech in France
The pilot should enable recovery of up to 95% of treated water, while limiting brine volumes, chemical reagent use, and overall energy consumption.
The Hybrid Batch Reverse Osmosis solution is based a piston driven pressure exchange process developed and patented by Salinity Solutions.
Salinity Solutions and water and waste management company SUEZ have announced the first municipal pilot of a Hybrid Batch Reverse Osmosis (HBRO) system.
The system is based on Salinity’s patented technology, and the pilot will be under real operating conditions at a wastewater treatment plant in Béziers, France.
Development of large-scale energy-efficient wastewater reuse solutions is critical to answer the growing challenges posed by water scarcity, many of which are driven by disruption to the water cycle.
Our collaboration with SUEZ marks a major step towards transforming water reuse economics and sustainability. By proving that high recovery can be achieved reliably and efficiently, at a large scale, with increased energy efficiency, we aim to set a new benchmark for advanced wastewater treatment worldwide.
The pilot is supported by the French Environment & Energy Management Agency, ADEME. The HBRO solution is based a piston driven pressure exchange process developed and patented by Salinity Solutions. Called HyBatch™, the technology recycles the brine multiple times until the targeted recovery rate is achieved.
HyBatch™ technology increases treated water recovery to 90–95%, compared with up to 85% for conventional reverse osmosis systems. It also reduces mineral build-up (scaling) in the equipment and cuts the frequency of chemical cleaning. This extends the lifespan of the membrane which removes contaminants including dissolved salts, heavy metals, bacteria, and chemicals.
Richard Bruges, CEO, Salinity Solutions said: “Our collaboration with SUEZ marks a major step towards transforming water reuse economics and sustainability. By proving that high recovery can be achieved reliably and efficiently, at a large scale, with increased energy efficiency, we aim to set a new benchmark for advanced wastewater treatment worldwide.”
Gregory Tesse, Infrastructure and Innovation Director of the Engineering & Construction activities of SUEZ, said: “Our objective is to reduce operating costs for the treatment processes, enabling local authorities and industrial players to deploy technologies that are essential to preserving water resources.”
Notes for editors
Notes for editors
About Salinity Solutions
Salinity Solutions addresses two of the biggest challenges facing humanity: water and energy. Born from the University of Birmingham in 2021, the company has developed HyBatch, a groundbreaking batch purification technology that delivers water recovery up to 98%, uses up to 50% less energy than traditional methods, often without the use of chemical pre-treatment. Its patented, commercially scalable system has been described as the most significant advance in reverse osmosis water treatment in 50 years, with applications ranging from industrial wastewater treatment and resource recovery to rural drinking water supply. Salinity Solutions was voted Breakthrough Technology Company of the Year at the 2025 Global Water Awards.
About SUEZ
Faced with growing environmental challenges, SUEZ has been delivering essential services that protect and improve our quality of life for more than 160 years. SUEZ provides its customers with innovative and resilient solutions for water and waste services. With 40,000 employees across 40 countries, the Group works with customers to create value over the full lifecycle of their assets and services, and to drive their low carbon transition. In 2025, SUEZ provided drinking water for 67 million people worldwide and sanitation services for 36 million people. The Group generated 8.7 TWh of energy from waste and wastewater. In 2025, SUEZ generated revenues of 9.5 billion euros.