What Clearford Water Systems does

Clearford Water Systems Inc., incorporated in 1999 and headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, is the largest operator of privately owned communal water and wastewater treatment facilities in Ontario, managing approximately 200 sites across the province. The company delivers integrated water infrastructure services spanning operations, engineering, compliance, and site performance for municipalities, private system owners, developers, commercial and industrial clients, First Nations communities, and remote mining operations. Service delivery is anchored by 11 operational hubs across Ontario providing 24/7 coverage over a service area exceeding 100,000 square kilometres, supported by more than 50 provincially licensed operators and an engineering/development office in India.

The company operates an extensive treatment technology portfolio including membrane bioreactors (MBR), moving bed biofilm reactors (MBBR), sequencing batch reactors (SBR), rotating biological contactors (RBC), extended aeration, reverse osmosis, microfiltration, UV disinfection, and chemical treatment systems, integrated with SCADA monitoring and automation. Proprietary and productized offerings include Clearford One (an integrated decentralized infrastructure solution), M-brane (membrane bioreactor technology acquired via Koester Canada), UV Pure (UV disinfection systems acquired via ASI Water/UV Pure technologies), and the award-winning P4P infrastructure financing program. Clearford's Design-Build-Operate (DBO) model embeds operations and engineering teams in the design stage to improve constructability and long-term maintainability.

Revenue is generated primarily through long-term managed services contracts for operations and maintenance of water and wastewater systems, supplemented by professional engineering services, regulatory compliance management, site performance support, and infrastructure financing arrangements under the P4P program. The company sells through a direct, relationship-driven enterprise field sales model using Account & Project Managers as primary client contacts, with bespoke quote-based pricing tied to contract scope. Clearford is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol CLI.

Name

Clearford Water Systems

Legal name

Clearford Water Systems Inc.

Website

https://clearford.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Clearford Water Systems is Ontario's largest operator of privately owned communal water and wastewater treatment systems, delivering integrated operations, engineering, and compliance services to municipalities, developers, First Nations, and mining clients across roughly 200 sites in Canada.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water and Wastewater Treatment Services

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Sewage Treatment Facilities (22132)

SIC

Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900), Water Supply (4941)

akta.pro primary industry

Decentralized/Package Wastewater Systems (Small/Remote) (EUANADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Onsite/Decentralized Reuse Utilities (District/Building‑Scale Reuse as a Service) (EUANAGAH), Program/Project Controls (Cost, Schedule, Risk, Governance) (EUANALAC), Water Reuse & Reclamation Infrastructure Construction (Recycled Water Systems) (IMAFAGAH)

Keywords

• Water and wastewater operations
• Municipal water management
• Decentralized water systems
• Water treatment engineering services
• Regulatory compliance water

Headquarters

HQ city

Ottawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Water and Wastewater Operations & Management: Long-term operations and maintenance contracts for water supply and wastewater treatment systems, including 24/7 emergency response, regulatory compliance monitoring and reporting. Revenue is contract-based with recurring nature from established client relationships across Ontario.
2. Professional Engineering Services: Engineering support including treatment process reviews, system optimization, equipment specifications and upgrade planning, regulatory documentation preparation (ECA applications, Engineering Evaluation Reports), and support for land development projects including Municipal Responsibility Agreement development.
3. Compliance Services: Regulatory compliance management including coordinating regulatory compliance programs, documenting and analyzing operational data, preparing records and reports, collaborating with operators on corrective actions, and conducting routine compliance audits. Can be delivered as standalone or hybrid solution alongside operations contracts.
4. Site Performance Services: Proactive operational support for troubleshooting and correcting mechanical or process-based concerns, maintaining regulatory compliance, supporting training initiatives, and recommending equipment upgrades.
5. Infrastructure Financing (P4P): Infrastructure financing services through the award-winning P4P (possibly Pay for Performance) program, combining project delivery with financing solutions for clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Clearford Water Systems operates, maintains, and engineers decentralized water and wastewater treatment systems for municipalities, developers, and private system owners across Ontario. The company provides full-service operations, professional engineering support, regulatory compliance management, and proactive site performance services, supported by proprietary treatment technologies including Clearford One, M-brane, and UV Pure. It is the largest operator of privately owned communal water and wastewater treatment facilities in Ontario, managing nearly 200 sites across a service area of over 100,000 square kilometers.

Product overview

Clearford Water Systems operates as a platform-plus-modules water and wastewater management company offering integrated solutions across Ontario. The core portfolio includes Clearford One (the flagship integrated infrastructure solution), M-brane (membrane bioreactor technology acquired via Koester Canada), and UV Pure (UV disinfection systems acquired via ASI Water integration), supported by the award-winning P4P financing program. The service architecture comprises four integrated modules: Operations Services (full-service management of water and wastewater systems), Engineering Services (technical expertise and process optimization), Compliance Services (regulatory coordination and reporting), and Site Performance Services (proactive troubleshooting and corrective support). Together, these products deliver end-to-end capability from design through long-term operations, with specialized offerings for remote mining sites and First Nations communities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Clearford One

Quantifiable outcome

• Targeted 1-hour response time to all sites across service area of over 100,000 square kilometres
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• ASI WatercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2019Integration of ASI Water in May 2019 expedited Clearford's business plan. The firm's complementary expertise and similar vision for leading in the wastewater sector equipped Clearford with resources needed to provide end-to-end services to customers.
• Koester Canada and Team Aquatic Operations GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2017Acquisition in late 2017 as the first step in Clearford's business plan to seek out partnerships to deliver decentralized water solutions critical to small and rural communities and businesses. This acquisition equipped Clearford with additional resources and capabilities in the wastewater sector.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Anaergia Inc. TSX-listed Canadian company providing resource recovery solutions including wastewater treatment, biosolids management, and renewable energy. Comparable in terms of Canadian small-cap profile and overlapping municipal water/wastewater customer base, with adjacent technology overlap.
• Organica Water: Provider of decentralized biological wastewater treatment solutions for municipal and industrial clients. Comparable technology and customer overlap with Clearford's MBR/MBBR/SBR treatment offerings, though more focused on plant supply than full operations.
• Biorem Inc. TSX-listed Canadian environmental technology company providing air emissions treatment and odor control solutions. Tangentially comparable as a small-cap Canadian environmental services company serving similar municipal customers, though focused on air rather than water.

Direct peers

• Newterra: Private company specializing in decentralized water and wastewater treatment systems for communities, industries, and remote sites. Directly comparable to Clearford's Clearford One and M-brane offerings in decentralized/package plant delivery and long-term operations.
• Fluence Corporation: ASX-listed provider of decentralized water and wastewater treatment solutions with smart-packaged plants and operating services. Highly comparable business model combining modular treatment technology with recurring operations contracts in municipal and industrial markets.
• H2O Innovation: Canadian (TSX-listed) water treatment solutions provider serving municipal, industrial, and decentralized applications with membrane and filtration technologies. Closest Canadian small-cap comparable to Clearford's decentralized water/wastewater operating model with similar geographic focus and customer mix.

Broad incumbents

• SUEZ Water Technologies & Solutions: Major global water and wastewater treatment provider with municipal, industrial, and decentralized capabilities. Competes with Clearford on municipal outsourcing RFPs and has the balance sheet to underbid on larger contract renewals.
• Veolia Water Technologies & Solutions: Global water technology giant with extensive municipal, industrial, and decentralized treatment offerings. While much larger and broader in scope, Veolia competes with Clearford for decentralized and municipal contracts and represents the strategic acquirer scenario for the company.
• Stantec Inc. Major Canadian engineering and infrastructure consulting firm with significant water/wastewater practice serving municipalities across North America. Comparable on the engineering services side of Clearford's business, though much larger and project-based rather than recurring operations.
• Xylem Inc. Leading global water technology company providing pumps, treatment, and smart metering solutions to utilities and industrial customers. Overlaps with Clearford on municipal water infrastructure and treatment equipment, though with vastly greater scale and product breadth.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks2 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInca.linkedin.com/company/clearford
• Xx.com/Clearford

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A2 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Clearford Water Systems