Offload Risk and Free Up Capital: How Existing Wastewater System Buyouts Transform Industrial Operations
Wastewater treatment may not be core to your business, but it is affecting your bottom line.
Many leading industrial teams we speak with tell us wastewater treatment quietly impacts their operations. Whether managing an aging system, facing seasonal load spikes, or investing in sustainability targets, your on-site wastewater infrastructure could be costing more than you realize.
That’s why more industrial leaders are turning to Cambrian’s existing asset Water Energy Purchase Agreement (WEPA), a no CapEx/OpEx required solution that transforms wastewater systems from a liability into a liquid asset.
What is an Existing Asset WEPA?
An Existing Asset WEPA is a no CapEx/OpEx solution where Cambrian buys, owns, and operates your facility’s current wastewater infrastructure. Your company retains on-site treatment, but Cambrian takes on all operational, financial, and compliance risks. You only pay for performance, meaning you pay a predictable rate for treated wastewater, rather than managing the system yourself.
In short: We buy it. We run it. We upgrade it. You only pay for performance from day one.
This model shifts the financial, operational, and compliance burdens away from your team, delivering predictable, performance-tied pricing and state-of-the-art upgrades.
An existing WEPA asset delivers immediate savings that scale over a 20-year partnership, ensuring price stability and peak system performance while driving growth, predictable budgeting, and uninterrupted operations. In the near term, Cambrian dramatically lowers operational and maintenance costs tied to wastewater treatment, and over the long term, delivers sustained savings through performance-based water rates and the elimination of CapEx.
Savings can be seen below in a recent cost analysis of a major industrial facility looking to partner with Cambrian to upgrade their high-volume wastewater system:
The Business Case for Cambrian's Existing Asset WEPA
Free Up Capital for Growth
Wastewater infrastructure is capital-intensive to maintain and rarely strategic. This model immediately monetizes that asset, freeing up capital you can redirect toward production, R&D, sustainability, or facility expansion.
Ask Yourself:
How much capital is currently tied up in non-strategic infrastructure?
If you could unlock that cash tomorrow, where would it make the biggest impact?
Eliminate Operational Burden
From equipment breakdowns to staffing challenges, operating a treatment plant in-house takes focus away from your core mission. Cambrian’s expert team handles all O&M, compliance, and upgrades, so your internal teams can focus on growing your core business.
Ask Yourself:
How much time and energy do your teams spend managing equipment issues instead of driving growth?
What would your operations look like if those distractions disappeared?
Accurately Forecast Costs
Under a WEPA, you only pay when wastewater is treated. No surprises, no seasonal spikes, no ballooning maintenance bills. Your facility gains predictable, performance-based pricing tied to real outcomes, enabling more strategic, forward-looking investments.
Ask Yourself:
What would it mean for your forecasting if wastewater costs were performance-based?
How do unpredictable expenses impact your confidence in future planning?
Meet Compliance with Confidence
Cambrian assumes responsibility for regulatory compliance and reporting. Combining our technology and expertise ensures consistent, audit-ready performance that meets or exceeds environmental standards.
Ask Yourself:
How much internal effort goes into staying audit-ready today?
What’s the cost (financial and reputational) of a compliance miss or violation?
Scale Efficiently, Sustainably
Need to expand capacity or reduce environmental impact? Cambrian can quickly upgrade or scale your system at our expense with no operational downtime, helping you hit your ESG goals while reducing your water and energy footprint.
Ask Yourself:
How easily can your current system adapt to growth or sustainability goals?
What barriers stand between your facility and your ESG commitments?
Cambrian in Action: Proven Results Across Industries
While each partnership is unique depending on the client's industry and their specific challenges, Cambrian's broad expertise ensures we can help solve the issues they value most.
Case in Point: From Peak-Season Strain to Sustainable Performance
In one example, a client faced major wastewater challenges during periods of peak usage, including overloaded systems, rising water hauling costs, and potential compliance issues. Cambrian stepped in to purchase their existing system and replace it with an EcoVolt® system under a WEPA, helping them quickly reach their goals. Among the results were:
-A ~99% reduction in BioChemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)
-100% of wastewater treated and re-used on site
-Modular system for seasonal peaks
-Eliminated the need for off-site hauling
Case in Point: Turning an Aging System into a Sustainable Advantage
Another client was struggling to sustainably maintain their aging, high-strength wastewater treatment system. They chose to partner with Cambrian, allowing us to quickly purchase their system, upgrade it, and take over operations. This allowed the customer to meet their sustainability goals and significantly reduce costs with no down-time for their intensive water treatment operations:
-400,000 gallons per day treated
-Projected to treat ~3.45 billion gallons over contract term
-Avoided ~23,000+ tons of CO₂ emissions
-Reduced total water and wastewater costs by 20%
Cambrian’s BlueCycle™ membrane bioreactor system is now seamlessly integrated on-site, with Cambrian owning and operating the full system under a long-term WEPA contract.
How the Existing Asset WEPA Process Works
- Assessment – Cambrian evaluates your current wastewater infrastructure, OpEX, and compliance challenges using provided data from your facility.
- Proposal – We structure a buy back agreement, customized to your operational goals and budget.
- Purchase & Transition – Cambrian purchases the system, assumes responsibility, and implements any required upgrades.
- Operate & Optimize – We handle daily operations, compliance, reporting, and long-term performance optimization.
- Pay for Performance – Pay only when water is treated, based on a per-gallon rate. No CapEx. No maintenance bills. No surprises.
Is Selling Your Wastewater System Right for Your Facility?
Our WEPA model is an industry-agnostic solution, ideal for any facility with sufficient water usage (typically 100,000+ gallons per day of wastewater):
-Facilities with aging infrastructure, capital limitations, or located in water-strained regions
-Industrial manufacturers facing rising compliance and O&M costs
-Food & beverage producers with seasonal peaks or high-strength waste
-Data centers with high water and energy costs
-Chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturers with stringent water quality requirements
-Sustainability-driven companies looking to hit ESG targets faster
If you’re treating water on site, you may be sitting on untapped value. Cambrian helps you unlock it, with no risk and no upfront cost.
Let's Talk
Whether you're exploring a new operational model or looking to upgrade without the capital outlay, Cambrian is ready to partner for long-term success.
Your next liquid asset is already on site. Let’s put it to work.
Schedule a conversation with Cambrian:
