The most reliable sign of a water treatment plant is not the water. It is the steady procession of tanker trucks, hauling in tons of corrosive, carbon-intensive chemicals. For a utility manager, this parade represents a fixed cost, a logistical headache, and a stubborn line in the carbon ledger. CIWI, a Dutch startup spun out of TU Delft, thinks it can park those trucks for good.
The company installs shipping-container-sized electrochemical units that make the chemicals on-site. Feed it electricity, salt, and a steel electrode, and it produces the coagulants and pH-adjusting agents needed to clean water. The first commercial-scale pilot is now running at a Brabant Water facility in Zevenbergen, treating process water for the Dutch utility [CIWI, Unknown]. For a sector built on bulk deliveries, it is a quiet but radical idea: turn a consumable into a utility.
A bet on electrochemical simplicity
CIWI’s technology is elegantly reductive. Instead of manufacturing aluminum- or iron-based coagulants in a centralized chemical plant and shipping them, the system uses electrolysis to release metal ions directly from a sacrificial steel anode inside the unit. Salt provides the necessary electrolyte. The result is a fresh, highly active coagulant produced exactly where it is used, with the main inputs being electricity and bulk materials that are easier and safer to store [Perplexity Sonar, Unknown].
The claimed environmental math is compelling. By eliminating the production and transportation of conventional chemicals, CIWI says its process can reduce associated CO2 emissions by up to 99 percent [Silicon Canals, Unknown]. For a municipal water authority facing tightening sustainability mandates, that is a number that gets attention. The commercial pitch, however, hinges on total cost. The company argues that lower chemical costs, reduced handling fees, and eliminated transport expenses will give its containerized units a competitive edge, even after accounting for the capital outlay.
The academic engine and first traction
CIWI is a product of the Dutch water technology ecosystem. Co-founders Jasper Schakel and Erik Kraaijeveld developed the concept after learning about chemical access issues in Ghana, then partnered with TU Delft professor Doris van Halem, a leading expert in drinking water treatment, to develop the patented core technology [YES!Delft, Unknown][Doris van Halem LinkedIn, Unknown]. This academic pedigree has been a launchpad, providing technical credibility and early validation.
The company’s early progress is measured in pilot projects and grants, not venture rounds. Its backing comes from the Rabo Impact Fund and the YES!Delft incubator, and it has won academic startup competitions [YES!Delft, Unknown][Silicon Canals, Unknown]. The tangible traction is on the ground. Following the Brabant Water installation, CIWI has also installed a system at the RWZI Lage Zwaluwe wastewater treatment plant [Jasper Schakel LinkedIn, Unknown]. The team remains small, at about seven people, focused on proving reliability and unit economics at these initial sites [Water Alliance, Unknown].
| Founder / Key Lead | Role | Background / Affiliation |
|---|---|---|
| Jasper Schakel | Co-Founder | IMD MBA [LinkedIn, Unknown] |
| Erik Kraaijeveld | Co-Founder | TU Delft [LinkedIn, Unknown] |
| Doris van Halem | Co-Founder, Professor | Professor of Drinking Water Technology, TU Delft [Doris van Halem LinkedIn, Unknown] |
Where the chemistry must meet the business
For all its technical elegance, CIWI’s path is not without solvents. The water treatment industry is conservative, with long procurement cycles and deep relationships with incumbent chemical suppliers like Kemira or SNF Floerger. Convincing a plant manager to swap a predictable, if inefficient, operating expense for a new piece of hardware is a classic innovator’s dilemma. The company must prove not just that the technology works, but that it works reliably for years with minimal downtime,a hardware challenge that goes beyond a successful pilot.
Financially, the company operates in a pre-commercial zone. Dealroom.co estimates an annual revenue of $598,885 and a valuation of $2 million, but these figures are unverified and likely based on very early activity [Dealroom.co, Unknown]. The reliance on impact grants rather than traditional venture capital suggests the business model and scaling plan are still being stress-tested. The next step is moving from pilots to paid, multi-year contracts.
The unit economics, however, are where the theory gets interesting. Let’s run a back-of-the-envelope check. A mid-sized water treatment plant might use 500 tons of aluminum-based coagulant per year. Producing and transporting that can emit around 1,000 tons of CO2. CIWI’s process claims a 99% reduction, saving nearly 990 tons. At a European carbon price of €80 per ton, that’s nearly €80,000 in avoided compliance costs annually, before even counting savings on chemical purchases and logistics. The bet is that this math will eventually crack open the market.
The incumbent to beat
CIWI is not trying to out-chemist the chemical giants. It is trying to make their delivery model obsolete. The company it must beat is not a specific startup, but the entrenched system of bulk liquid transport. Its real competition is the tanker truck rolling up to the plant gate,a symbol of a century-old, carbon-heavy supply chain. If CIWI’s containers can prove they are more reliable and economical than that familiar schedule, the chemistry of the entire industry might just change.
Sources
- [CIWI, Unknown] CIWI - Chemical Innovation for Water Industries | https://www.ciwi.earth/
- [Perplexity Sonar, Unknown] CIWI: Research Brief
- [Silicon Canals, Unknown] CIWI wins Academic Startup Competition 2025
- [YES!Delft, Unknown] CIWI | YES!Delft | https://yesdelft.com/startups/ciwi/
- [Doris van Halem LinkedIn, Unknown] Doris van Halem - Professor Drinking Water Quality & Treatment - Technische Universiteit Delft | https://www.linkedin.com/in/doris-van-halem-3621435/
- [Jasper Schakel LinkedIn, Unknown] Jasper Schakel - CIWI | LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasper-schakel/
- [Water Alliance, Unknown] CIWI: cleaner water without trucks full of chemicals - Water Alliance | https://wateralliance.nl/en/ciwi-cleaner-water-without-trucks-full-of-chemicals/
- [Dealroom.co, Unknown] CIWI company information, funding & investors | https://app.dealroom.co/companies/ciwi
- [LinkedIn, Unknown] Erik Kraaijeveld - CIWI | LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-kraaijeveld-40b5b8200/
- [Water Alliance, Unknown] CIWI: cleaner water without trucks full of chemicals - Water Alliance | https://wateralliance.nl/en/ciwi-cleaner-water-without-trucks-full-of-chemicals/
- [Dealroom.co, Unknown] CIWI company information, funding & investors | https://app.dealroom.co/companies/ciwi