Case studies
Roca Water partners with Enduring Planet to scale circular wastewater recovery
Roca Water has developed a battery-inspired electrochemical system that recovers valuable materials from wastewater. Nutrients like ammonium drive harmful algal blooms and potent greenhouse gas emissions when discharged into waterways, yet these same compounds are key ingredients in fertilizer and essential chemical products. Roca's membrane-free platform uses ion-selective electrode materials to capture ammonium and magnesium from wastewater and convert them into concentrated ammonium sulfate fertilizer and magnesium hydroxide, a chemical widely used in water treatment.
This platform helps utilities and agricultural operations clean their water while creating a domestic, low-carbon source of fertilizer and critical materials. Recovering ammonium from U.S. wastewater and recycling it into fertilizer could offset up to half of domestic ammonia demand while reducing energy consumption by 30-50% relative to conventional production methods.
As a pre-revenue hardware company working through reimbursement-based federal grants, Roca Water required flexible working capital that would not dilute its cap table or put personal assets at risk. That is where Enduring Planet stepped in.
Roca Water partnered with Enduring Planet to:
- Secure non-dilutive working capital backed by a milestone-based federal award
- Maintain equipment purchases, materials procurement, and technical staffing on schedule
- Eliminate financing gaps without requiring collateral or personal guarantees
Enduring Planet stood out for its climate-sector expertise, speed, and tailored underwriting process. By evaluating the federal award directly rather than trying to fit an early-stage hardware company into a traditional credit box, Enduring Planet delivered fast funding aligned with how government-funded climate companies operate.
With Enduring Planet's support, Roca Water is keeping its development milestones on track as it scales its recovery system from the lab toward field pilots. Closing financing gaps allows Roca Water to deploy its technology sooner, cleaning waterways and displacing carbon-intensive fertilizer production.
The Government Advance gave us breathing room on a milestone-based federal award without touching our cap table. For an early-stage hardware company, that combination is hard to find.
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