Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant Feasibility Studies

A water or wastewater treatment plant feasibility study can help businesses identify the most cost-effective solution to resolve an issue or progress towards a specific goal, such as achieving sustainability or regulatory targets.

Conducting a thorough feasibility study at the outset can prevent costly delays or the selection of unsuitable technologies that may fail to perform as expected – or at all - when commissioned due to insufficient upfront evaluation. Unfortunately, this is not an uncommon scenario and can lead to significant regret spending and on-going cost and performance issues.

A feasibility study enables informed decision-making and sets the scene for successful project implementation. It is a crucial step in the process for companies looking to upgrade, install a new plant, address new regulatory changes, or overcome performance or water supply issues. It assesses the viability of different options and proposes the best one based on pre-determined assessment criteria. A feasibility study allows decision-makers to:

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Prioritise projects effectively.
Identify inefficiencies and areas for improvement in existing infrastructure.
Evaluate various technological solutions on factors such as cost-effectiveness, energy efficiency and compliance.
Mitigate risks by predicting potential challenges.
Maximise the return on investment.
Secure long-term viability and sustainability.

Feasibility studies are essential for forward-thinking companies aiming to meet the dual challenge of sustainability and operational efficiency. We are seeing a growing interest from businesses looking to future-proof their water management systems, ensuring they not only comply with regulations but also contribute to long-term environmental goals. Using our extensive expertise in the design, build and operation of water and wastewater treatment plants, we can help clients avoid common pitfalls and select solutions that deliver the best return on investment while aligning with their net zero ambitions.

Dr Ming Zhu

Engineering Manager, Alpheus

What does a Feasibility Study Include?

Project Goals Consideration

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The study examines the specific requirements and objectives of the project, ensuring factors such as regulatory, environmental and future expansion are considered alongside the main goal.

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Assessment of Existing Infrastructure

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This includes analysis of existing water or wastewater treatment processes, equipment and operational procedures aiming to identify areas of inefficiency, and potential issues and highlight compliance issues that need addressing.

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Analysis of the Options

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Likely the meatiest part of the study, this section provides a detailed analysis of the options to address the objectives and could include technological solutions, process modifications, and infrastructure enhancements, weighing their respective benefits, costs, and risks.

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Financial Analysis

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The financial assessment provides an estimate of the project’s capital and operational costs, alongside the potential return on investment (or savings, if appropriate). Alongside this, it will address the potential environmental impacts, and highlight compliance and regulatory adherence.

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Recommendations

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A recommendation would be provided, highlighting the key points that make it the most appropriate option. This provides a summary based on the comparison of the options.

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Annexes or Appendices

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These would typically include supporting information, or flow charts and more detailed diagrams where appropriate.

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Clients can trust that our feasibility studies deliver unbiased evaluations, incorporating the most effective technologies from across the market rather than being limited to a single provider. Each recommendation is carefully tailored to fully address their unique needs and project requirements.

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Recent Alpheus Feasibility Studies

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Alpheus work with clients to create a study that provides the best level of information based on their goals or challenges. We will agree on the scope of the study, for which the information and recommendations will be tailored. We’ve shared a high-level overview of some of the recent studies we have carried out.

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Feasibility study for major UK snack manufacturer

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This client operates an ageing wastewater treatment plant. They are keen to improve the plant's performance and reduce operating costs. They are especially keen to reduce Mogden costs and understand the potential to recover energy from waste to use on-site.

The FEASIBILITY study involved:

A full description and review of the existing process, and technologies which also highlighted associated challenges and costs.
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A detailed assessment of three proposed solutions and options to address their objectives. The options considered included:
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Option 1: Treating the waste before discharge through the current sewage system
Option 2: Installing a two-digester Anaerobic Digestion system to treat the waste and wastewater streams separately before passing through the same secondary treatment.
Option 3: Combining the waste streams to be treated in a single Anaerobic reactor, whilst retaining some of the existing treatment plant.
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A financial assessment, summarised in a Rough Order Magnitude table for each of the proposed options, which included the scope of each solution, a high-level indicative cost and major considerations, which covered assumptions and exclusions. The costs included the capital investment and the cost to operate and maintain the solution over 30 years.
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In conclusion, the study identified the third option as the most economically viable, offering a likely saving of £25 million over 30 years versus treating the waste before discharge through the current sewage system.

The recommended option would also have the most positive impact on the sustainability and Net Zero potential of the site. This holistic approach addresses issues relating to age, condition and operational effectiveness of certain key elements of the existing WWTP, while maximising reuse of a number of the site's major waste streams.

A global pharmaceutical manufacturing plant upgrade to increase capacity

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Our client sought a review of the current treatment plant functionality and potential solutions to enable them to meet future growth requirements, whilst meeting EA consent. The study also considered the options of continuing with their current discharge route to a local watercourse or updating the route to discharge to sewer.

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Alpheus conducted several site visits and combined this information with insight into plant performance and operational data from the client.

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The feasibility study covered:

A full description and review of the existing process, and technologies which also highlighted associated challenges and costs.
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Proposed solutions and options to address their objectives, which included:

Option 1: Upgrading the existing plant to an MBBR plant to improve performance and increase capacity, whilst continuing to use the existing discharge route to the local watercourse.
Option 2: Installing a new Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) Plant to replace the existing plant, continuing to use the existing discharge route.
Option 3: Modifying the existing plant to improve performance increase capacity and change to an alternative, sewer discharge route.
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A financial assessment, summarised in a Rough Order Magnitude table for each of the proposed options, which included the scope of each solution, a high-level indicative cost and major considerations, which covered assumptions made and exclusions.
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The financial assessment provided insight for the client to assess their next steps. The report highlighted the need for further investigation into the feasibility and cost of acquiring land and permissions for the sewer discharge route option to retain or discard this as an option.

Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant Feasibility Studies

Benefits of commissioning a feasibility study

Benefits of commissioning a feasibility study

What does a Feasibility Study Include?

Project Goals Consideration

Assessment of Existing Infrastructure

Analysis of the Options

Financial Analysis

Recommendations

Annexes or Appendices

Recent Alpheus Feasibility Studies

Feasibility study for major UK snack manufacturer

The FEASIBILITY study involved:

A global pharmaceutical manufacturing plant upgrade to increase capacity

The feasibility study covered:

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