7 minute read
Interview Riksta Zwart
Waterbedrijf Groningen has five production locations and supplies 44 billion litres of freshwater to over 575,000 private and business customers. The company also produces industrial water through the joint venture North Water and, together with WMD, formerly Waterleidingmaatschappij Drenthe, owns WLN, formerly Waterlaboratorium Noord. Waterbedrijf Groningen also has various heat projects. Riksta Zwart has been managing director since 2014. Ronald Wielinga of WaterCampus Leeuwarden interviewed her.
RIKSTA, YOU HAVE BEEN MANAGING DIRECTOR OF WATERBEDRIJF GRONINGEN FOR OVER SIX YEARS NOW. WHAT HAVE BEEN THE MOST IMPORTANT DEVELOPMENTS AT WATERBEDRIJF GRONINGEN DURING YOUR TENURE AS MANAGING DIRECTOR, BOTH WITHIN THE COMPANY AND IN YOUR ENVIRONMENT? One critical development in recent years is that we have brought the outside world in. We now have a much better understanding of what is going on around us. We work closely with important stakeholders, such as the Hunze en Aa and Noorderzijlvest water boards.
In addition to the urgency of the energy transition, we also see increased attention to the need for a water transition. The sufficient availability of high-quality drinking water is under pressure. Our society uses increasing amounts of water—partly due to economic growth and partly due to increasingly dry and hot summers as a result of climate change. As a water company, we have developed a roadmap with regional parties. The main goal is to secure the drinking water supply in Groningen sustainably and actively contribute to a province where water production, nature, agriculture, economic developments and quality of life reinforce each other.
WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST BARRIERS CURRENTLY DELAYING THE ACHIEVEMENT OF YOUR OBJECTIVES? We need to invest heavily in our infrastructure in the coming years—things like replacing pipelines and renovating production installations. We also feel a social responsibility to invest in making our business operations more sustainable. Also, as I indicated before, we are in a water transition. Social changes take a lot of time. Raising awareness and reducing water consumption are long-term processes that must be implemented with conviction before a water company can lay claim to scarce new resources. With the water transition, we are aiming to complete all steps simultaneously.
WHAT ROLE DOES INNOVATION PLAY IN SOLVING THESE CHALLENGES? Innovation is essential. Let me give a few examples. Innovative approaches and purification techniques are essential when supplying custom water to industry, such as the use of effluent from the WWTP. Another example is reducing our CO2 footprint; one way of achieving that is the reduction of CH4 emissions from groundwater extraction. After the test phase, we are now designing the groundwater treatment
plant. WLN also developed the PCR method, an accredited method used to detect low concentrations of pathogens in drinking water. It is much faster than culture methods, providing our customers with a quicker answer about the biological safety of drinking water. KWR recently applied this technique to detect COVID-19 in sewage.
IN ADDITION TO THE INNOVATION NECESSARY TO TACKLE CHALLENGES, WATERBEDRIJF GRONINGEN ALSO FACES OTHER DEVELOPMENTS, SUCH AS THE EXTENT TO WHICH WE CAN LEVERAGE DATA. WHAT OTHER TECHNICAL CHANGES DO YOU SEE IN STORE FOR THE DRINKING WATER SECTOR, AND MORE SPECIFICALLY, FOR WATERBEDRIJF GRONINGEN? Our sector has been digitalizing for a long time. We are using smart algorithms for our production and distribution processes. The challenge lies less in producing data than in translating it into valuable information that we can use to predict vulnerabilities in our distribution network. Combining data is also important; by combining social media data from our customers regarding water outages in our area with our
Riksta Zwart
internal operational data, we can quickly determine the location and size of an affected area. In addition to preventing calamities, decisionsupport software will also play an important role in deciding whether or not to replace pipelines. Drinking water networks last approximately 80 years. You don’t want to replace them too late, but you certainly don’t want to replace them too early either. Decisionsupport software can be of great help here. It should also be noted that good data analysts are essential for the whole digital transition.
IN MY INTERVIEW WITH CONSTANTIJN VAN ORANJE, HE INDICATED THAT ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN THE WATER INDUSTRY IS CHALLENGING BECAUSE A LOT OF THE KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE WE COULD BRING TO THE MARKET BELONGS TO PUBLIC ORGANIZATIONS. DRINKING WATER COMPANIES, SUCH AS WATERBEDRIJF GRONINGEN, ARE AN EXAMPLE OF THIS, EVEN THOUGH ENTREPRENEURSHIP IS NECESSARY TO INCREASE THE SECTOR’S ECONOMIC IMPACT AND SOLVE SOCIETAL CHALLENGES. HOW DO YOU STIMULATE ENTREPRENEURSHIP WITHIN YOUR ORGANIZATION? Water companies are enterprising utilities. While we certainly try to encourage our employees at Waterbedrijf Groningen, it is always to develop the social interest we have established as a public limited company. We encourage our employees to be creative and develop solutions to the challenges we face as a water company.
NATURALLY, AS A WATER COMPANY, YOU DO YOUR BEST TO STIMULATE ENTERPRISING BEHAVIOUR AMONG YOUR EMPLOYEES, BUT IN THE CONTEXT OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP, I’M TALKING MORE ABOUT NEW BUSINESS. MANY WATER COMPANIES, INCLUDING WATERBEDRIJF GRONINGEN, PARTICIPATE IN SUBSIDIARIES. WHAT IS THE STRATEGY BEHIND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THESE ACTIVITIES? WHY DO YOU CHOOSE TO TAKE UP CERTAIN ACTIVITIES AND NOT OTHERS? WHERE DO THE BOUNDARIES LIE? The decision to participate in a subsidiary, such as North Water or WarmteStad, is made in agreement with our shareholders. The request often even comes from the shareholders. We consider whether participating will contribute to our objectives as a water company. For example, North Water allows us to supply customized water to industrial users in our supply area, which positively affects the availability of our sources for the supply of drinking water. That contributes to our intended water transition. In other cases, such as heat networks, our shareholders ask us to play a role in the energy transition because of our expertise and experience. Don’t forget; we have 141 years of experience in infrastructure management and soil knowledge and expertise. Heat networks have a lot in common with the infrastructure we currently manage.
The drinking water supply always has the highest priority when considering participations. Other activities are placed in separate legal entities to prevent associated potential risks from affecting our drinking water customers.
INNOVATION AND SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHING A WATER TECH COMPANY IS A HIGHLY COMPLEX MATTER. IT OFTEN REQUIRES LARGE INVESTMENTS, MARGINS ARE RELATIVELY LOW, AND MANY CUSTOMERS ARE RISK-AVERSE—MANY ENTREPRENEURS DEVELOPING A TECHNOLOGY STRUGGLE TO TURN AN INTERESTED END-USER INTO A FIRST CUSTOMER. WATERBEDRIJF GRONINGEN COULD BE A LAUNCHING CUSTOMER. IF A COMPANY WANTS TO TEST ITS INNOVATION ON YOUR PREMISES, IS THAT POSSIBLE? IF SO, HOW SHOULD THEY GO ABOUT THAT? WHAT ARE THE DIFFICULTIES IN THESE PROGRAMMES? Yes, we are very open to that, in principle. I would say get in touch—we are always happy to meet with entrepreneurs, not just for Waterbedrijf Groningen. We also have an extensive network, including our subsidiaries, such as WLN and North Water, and other organizations in the region and the rest of the country. make long-term investments. Our infrastructure must be reliable and sound. After all, we have to provide safe and reliable drinking water 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. But that does not mean we are not open to new, innovative technology. That much is clear from the challenges we face as an organization.
DON’T PROCUREMENT REGULATIONS HAMPER YOU? It has to be legally correct, of course, but there are plenty of options when it comes to innovations, such as a test site or at one of our other entities. If the innovative solution provides added value, it will score highly during any tendering procedures.
IS IT POSSIBLE FOR THE WATER COMPANY AND ONE OR MORE PARTNERS TO DEVELOP AN INNOVATION THAT COULD BE COMMERCIALIZED? SPECIFICALLY, A SITUATION WHERE THE WATER COMPANY WOULD CONTINUE TO PLAY A ROLE IN THE COMMERCIAL PHASE. WOULD WATERBEDRIJF GRONINGEN BE WILLING TO PARTICIPATE FINANCIALLY IN A TECH COMPANY? As a water company, we are happy to share our knowledge and join forces as partners. We are frequently involved in European projects, and we always play a role in your annual WaterCampus Business Challenge for starting entrepreneurs, for example. However, we will not engage in commercial activities on behalf of the water company—that’s not our role. But please, consider this an invitation to contact us when entrepreneurs want to exchange ideas with us about something they are developing.
