Danish utility Fors A/S pioneers sustainable wastewater treatment with Veolia’s revolutionary Cella™ technology

• The Svinninge plant is the first full-scale facility to deploy Cella, an innovative biofilm technology that offers a sustainable, compact and energy-efficient solution for wastewater treatment.
   
• The upgrade will increase the plant’s capacity by 40% up to 6,300population equivalents while meeting stringent effluent requirements.
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Fors A/S, the utility company serving the municipalities of Holbæk, Lejre and Roskilde, inaugurated on Friday the upgraded Svinninge wastewater treatment plant featuring Veolia's groundbreaking Cella™ technology. The plant is the first full-scale facility in the world to deploy the innovative biofilm technology that offers a sustainable, compact and energy-efficient solution for wastewater treatment.

Located in Svinninge, about 60 kilometers west of Copenhagen, the plant was upgraded to increase capacity by 40% up to 6,300 population equivalents while meeting stringent effluent requirements. Two Veolia Water Technologies subsidiaries ‒ Krüger A/S, a Danish water and wastewater treatment specialist, and AnoxKaldnes, a world-leading supplier of biological water purification solutions headquartered in Sweden ‒ teamed up to develop and implement the world-first solution, working with Fors and the Danish Environmental Protection Agency through the Environmental Technology Development and Demonstration Program (MUDP).

"Fors is proud to be part of this exciting collaboration and to show this state-of-the-art facility and future of wastewater services to the world," said Henrik Correll, COO of Fors. "Looking at ways to reduce our carbon footprint is part of our DNA and something we work towards every day. It is of tremendous importance that we seek to look at new solutions through smart partnerships, of which this project is a great example."

About the technology
Cella is a breakthrough technology that advances the biofilm principles of the moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) technology by using high surface-area support material derived from renewable biomass, fostering robust biofilm growth. As well as being biodegradable, Cella can be implemented as a continuous, all-in-one process solution for achieving carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus removal with minimal or zero chemical consumption. The innovative process maximizes energy efficiency and recovery.

The compact, efficient and sustainable nature of Cella makes it an ideal choice for plants with limited space availability, enabling them to expand their capacity while embracing sustainable practices. By harnessing the power of renewable resources and optimizing resource utilization, Cella paves the way for a greener and more efficient future in wastewater treatment.

Veolia recently unveiled its ambitious Green Up strategic program for 2024-2027, accelerating the deployment of affordable, replicable solutions that depollute, decarbonize and regenerate resources. Water technologies and new solutions are at the heart of this program, with Cella standing as a shining example of what can be achieved. Collaborating with dedicated partners like Fors on this essential journey is absolutely key.

"Veolia is proud to partner with Fors on this pioneering project that drives sustainable innovation in the water sector," said Anne Le Guennec, Veolia Senior Executive Vice President, Worldwide Water Technologies. "Cella is a game-changer, combining innovative biofilm technology with a commitment to sustainability and resource efficiency. By leveraging renewable materials and optimizing energy use, it empowers municipalities to decarbonize operations while boosting treatment capacity and effluent quality. Water technologies are a core booster of our new strategic program, Green Up, and Cella perfectly exemplifies our commitment to developing and delivering innovative solutions to harmonize environmental stewardship and operational excellence."

The Svinninge plant is currently in start-up phase, with an extensive sampling program planned until summer 2025 to monitor performance and optimize operations. Veolia's cloud-based digital twin, Hubgrade Wastewater Plant Performance, will also enable advanced process control and remote monitoring, further contributing to an optimal operational and environmental performance.

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ABOUT FORS A/S

Fors A/S is a municipally owned utility company reaching approximately 200,000 customers in Holbæk, Lejre, and Roskilde municipalities every day with one or more of our products, including the delivery of drinking water and district heating as well as waste management and handling of wastewater and renovation. Together with our customers and collaboration partners we strive to make our mutual task of preserving nature accessible to everyone. www.fors.dk

ABOUT VEOLIA

Veolia group aims to become the benchmark company for ecological transformation. Present on five continents with nearly 218,000 employees, the Group designs and deploys useful, practical solutions for the management of water, waste and energy that are contributing to a radical turnaround of the current situation. Through its three complementary activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, to preserve available resources and to renew them. In 2023, the Veolia group provided 113 million inhabitants with drinking water and 103 million with sanitation, produced 42 million megawatt hours of energy and treated 63 million tonnes of waste. Veolia Environnement (Paris Euronext: VIE) achieved consolidated revenue of 45,351 million euros in 2023. www.veolia.com