ULTIMATE - Report on water sector and industry in Europe and beyond

“ULTIMATE was initiated to become a catalyst of a particular type of industrial symbiosis which is termed “Water Smart Industrial Symbiosis” (WSIS). Water and wastewater play a key role in WSIS, both as a reusable resource per se but also as a vector for energy and materials to be extracted, treated, stored and reused within a dynamic socio-economic and business oriented industrial ecosystem.
The setup of ULTIMATE was designed in such a way that it would support uptake in and transfer of WSIS knowledge and experiences to other industrial environments, different regional and cultural settings, as well as the upscaling of current case studies. As such, ULTIMATE actively contributes to the green and digital ‘twin’ transition promoted by the EC in the EU and beyond.
ULTIMATE has successfully shown the potential of Water Smart Industrial Symbiosis (WSIS) based on nine case studies in different industrial settings. The uptake of WSIS, however, is strongly dependent on the availability of wastewater and the opportunities for reuse of water, energy and resources, as well as a positive business case and governance and legal arrangements in place. ULTIMATE partners have put significant efforts in sharing their experiences with WSIS with water industry and industrial stakeholders across Europe and beyond, and identify opportunities for WSIS in different industrial settings.”

(Citation: van den Berg, G.A. – ULTIMATE D6.6 – Report on water sector and industry in Europe and beyond (2024))