Clean TeQ Water Delivers First Commercial PHOSPHIX® (Phosphate Removal) Operating Reference Plant in Europe
28 July 2026
Highlights
First Full-Scale PHOSPHIX® Plant Commissioned
Clean TeQ Water has successfully completed commissioning and contractual performance testing of its first full-scale commercial PHOSPHIX® phosphate removal plant in Europe, delivered in partnership with Enva in Ireland.
Performance Exceeds Contract Requirements
Independent laboratory testing confirmed phosphate concentrations ten times lower than the contractual requirement of 1 mg/L across all treated water samples. The plant also demonstrated hydraulic capacity above its design rate.
European Reference Established for Growth
The successful completion establishes Clean TeQ Water’s first commercial operating reference for PHOSPHIX® and provides a strong platform for future growth in Europe.
Europe's First Commercial PHOSPHIX® Plant
Clean TeQ Water has successfully completed commissioning and contractual performance testing for its first full-scale commercial PHOSPHIX® phosphate removal plant, delivered in partnership with Enva in Ireland.
The milestone marks the commercial deployment of PHOSPHIX® following several years of laboratory development, pilot testing and engineering. It also establishes Clean TeQ Water’s first operating PHOSPHIX® reference plant and its first commercial reference installation in Europe.
The project, originally announced on 15 November 2024, was designed to remove phosphate from industrial wastewater generated by Enva’s end-user, a multinational pharmaceutical manufacturer, ahead of tightening European discharge regulations.
The contractual performance demonstration was completed following a continuous ten-day operating test during June 2026, extended by mutual agreement from the original five-day test period to accommodate variations in feedwater flow and composition. Independent laboratory testing confirmed phosphate concentrations below 0.1 mg/L P-PO₄, exceeding the contractual specification of 1.0 mg/L by more than tenfold. Online analysers closely matched the independent laboratory results. All treated water quality specifications, including pH, total nitrogen and chemical oxygen demand, were achieved.
The plant also exceeded its contracted hydraulic throughput while automatically staging and de-staging ion exchange trains in response to varying feed flows.
The plant is designed to operate at 99% water recovery and produces no liquid brine, instead recovering phosphate as a solid hydroxyapatite by-product that can be handled and disposed of safely and cost-effectively. The project has been delivered in accordance with the contracted scope and marks the successful transition of the PHOSPHIX® technology from laboratory test work and on-site piloting through detailed engineering to full operational deployment.
The revised European Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive and increasingly stringent industrial discharge limits are expected to drive significant investment in phosphorus removal and recovery over the coming decade. The successful delivery of the Enva project positions Clean TeQ Water to participate in this growing market with a proven commercial reference installation.
“We now have an operating European plant that provides prospective customers with a proven commercial operating reference. A successful operating reference plant provides prospective customers with confidence in the technology’s performance under full-scale operating conditions.
“We thank Enva for their outstanding partnership and look forward to building on this success as we pursue further opportunities across Europe.”
PHOSPHIX® demonstrates the breadth of applications possible using Clean TeQ Water’s proprietary Moving Bed Ion Exchange (MBIX) platform, joining DESALX®, HIROX®, BIONEX® and CLEAN-IX® as commercial implementations of the technology.
“Working closely with our customer throughout the project, we have delivered the first full-scale PHOSPHIX® tertiary phosphate recovery plant in Europe, demonstrating how advanced treatment solutions can help industrial customers achieve their environmental objectives while providing operational certainty.
“Building on this achievement, we look forward to supporting more customers with sustainable treatment solutions that improve environmental performance and help meet evolving regulatory requirements.”
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