POWERSTEP · Project

Turn Sewage Treatment Plants Into Power Stations That Pay For Themselves

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Imagine your city's sewage plant is like a furnace that burns money — it uses huge amounts of electricity just to clean dirty water. But all that muck flowing in actually contains trapped energy, enough across Europe to replace 12 power stations. POWERSTEP showed, at real full-size plants in 4 countries, how to flip the script: extract that energy using smarter filtering, gas conversion, and heat recovery so the plant actually produces more power than it uses. Think of it as turning a cost center into a small power plant that also happens to clean water.

By the numbers

87,500 GWh/year

Chemical energy in EU municipal wastewater organic fraction

Large power stations equivalent in untapped wastewater energy

Power stations equivalent currently consumed by EU wastewater treatment

Full-scale demonstration case studies completed

European countries hosting demonstration sites

Consortium partners across 7 countries

62%

Industry partner ratio in consortium

The business problem

What needed solving

Wastewater treatment plants across Europe are massive energy consumers — collectively using the equivalent of more than 2 large power stations. Meanwhile, the sewage flowing through them contains chemical energy equivalent to 12 power stations, but current treatment processes waste it. Plant operators face rising energy costs with no way to tap the energy already passing through their facilities.

The solution

What was built

POWERSTEP demonstrated 6 full-scale technology packages at real treatment plants: enhanced carbon extraction via microscreen filtration (optimized for commercial drumfilters and discfilters with integrated sludge thickening), advanced nitrogen removal, power-to-gas biogas upgrading with smart grid integration, heat-to-power recovery systems, and process water treatment. The project delivered 33 deliverables including treatment scheme models, integrated design options, and carbon footprint assessments.

Audience

Who needs this

Municipal water utilities looking to cut energy costs at treatment plantsEnvironmental equipment manufacturers seeking validated full-scale reference installationsBiogas and power-to-gas companies exploring distributed renewable energy sourcesEngineering consultancies designing or upgrading wastewater treatment facilitiesCity governments under pressure to reduce municipal carbon footprints

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Water and wastewater utilities

enterprise

Target: Municipal wastewater treatment plant operators

If you are a water utility struggling with rising energy costs at your treatment plants — this project demonstrated full-scale technologies across 6 case studies that turn energy-consuming plants into net energy producers. The processes include enhanced carbon extraction, smart biogas upgrading, and heat-to-power recovery, all proven at real operating plants. European municipal wastewater holds the equivalent of 12 large power stations in chemical energy — and your plant could be tapping into it.

Environmental technology providers

mid-size

Target: Companies manufacturing filtration, biogas, or heat recovery equipment

If you are an equipment manufacturer looking for validated reference installations — POWERSTEP tested technologies like microscreen primary filtration, main-stream deammonification, and thermoelectric CHP recovery at 6 full-scale sites across 4 countries. With 10 industry partners already in the consortium, the designs are optimized for commercial deployment. The project produced 33 deliverables including optimized commercial system designs for both drumfilters and discfilters.

Energy and grid services

any

Target: Biogas upgrading and power-to-gas companies

If you are an energy company exploring distributed renewable gas sources — this project demonstrated power-to-gas biogas upgrading with a smart grid approach at full scale. Sewage plants across Europe sit on untapped chemical energy equivalent to 12 large power stations. POWERSTEP showed how to convert sewage biogas into grid-quality gas while integrating with local energy demand, creating a new revenue stream from existing infrastructure.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to retrofit my treatment plant with these technologies?

The project data does not include specific retrofit cost figures. However, POWERSTEP was an Innovation Action with 16 partners including 10 industry players, meaning the technologies were tested at commercial scale with cost-effectiveness in mind. Contact the consortium for site-specific cost assessments based on the 6 full-scale case studies.

Has this been proven at industrial scale or only in the lab?

This is fully industrial scale. POWERSTEP ran 6 full-scale case studies at real operating wastewater treatment plants in 4 European countries. The funding scheme was an Innovation Action (IA), which specifically targets demonstration and market uptake, not basic research. The microscreen deliverable explicitly describes optimization for commercial drumfilter and discfilter systems.

Who owns the IP and how can I license these technologies?

The consortium includes 10 industry partners and 5 SMEs who likely hold IP on specific components. Since the project used existing technologies in new configurations, much of the IP relates to process integration and optimized designs rather than single patents. Contact the coordinator KWB Berlin or individual technology providers for licensing terms.

Do these technologies meet current EU wastewater treatment regulations?

POWERSTEP explicitly states that energy-positive operation is achieved without compromising treatment performance. The project included carbon footprinting and integrated design activities to ensure regulatory compliance. All 6 case studies operated at real plants under normal regulatory conditions.

How long does it take to implement these upgrades?

The project ran from 2015 to 2018 across 6 demonstration sites. Based on available project data, individual technology modules like microscreen filtration or biogas upgrading can be implemented as standalone upgrades. The project produced treatment scheme models and integrated design options to help operators plan phased implementation.

Can these be added to existing plants or only new builds?

The technologies were demonstrated as retrofits at existing operational treatment plants, not greenfield sites. The 6 full-scale case studies prove these can be integrated into running facilities. The project specifically produced integrated design options and treatment scheme modeling to guide retrofitting decisions.

Consortium

Who built it

POWERSTEP has one of the strongest commercial profiles you'll find in EU research. Of the 16 partners across 7 countries, 10 are industry players (62%) and 5 are SMEs — this is not an academic exercise. The coordinator KWB Berlin is a recognized water competency center in Germany. The geographic spread (Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden) covers Europe's most advanced water markets. With only 1 university and 3 research organizations, the consortium was clearly built to move technology to market, not publish papers. The mix of equipment manufacturers, utilities, and engineering firms means the full value chain from component design to plant operation is represented.

KWB KOMPETENZZENTRUM WASSER BERLIN GEMEINNUTZIGE GMBHCoordinator · DE
TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITAET WIENparticipant · AT
EIDGENOESSISCHE ANSTALT FUER WASSERVERSORGUNG ABWASSERREINIGUNG UND GEWAESSERSCHUTZparticipant · CH
BIOFOS ASparticipant · DK
ARCTIK SRLparticipant · BE
KRUEGER A/Sthirdparty · DK
NEAS ENERGY ASparticipant · DK
UMWELTBUNDESAMTparticipant · DE
BERLINER WASSERBETRIEBEparticipant · DE

How to reach the team

KWB Kompetenzzentrum Wasser Berlin (Germany) — use SciTransfer's coordinator lookup service to get the right contact person

Order a report on this consortium See KWB KOMPETENZZENTRUM WASSER BERLIN GEMEINNUTZIGE GMBH profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to know which POWERSTEP technologies fit your plant? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the right consortium partner for your specific situation.

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