AQUA4D Launches Regional Base in Chile to Promote Water-Efficient Irrigation in Latin America

Following the opening of a regional office in California, USA, the Swiss-based water innovator now officially kicks off operations in Santiago, Chile. With a strong team on the ground, this will help expand the company’s ability to offer optimized irrigation across Latin America.

Santiago, 31 May 2023: Water scarcity issues in Chile are widely recognized, as is the need to improve efficient use of resources for irrigating crops and green areas. With an innovative technology, Switzerland’s AQUA4D® does precisely this – maximizing outputs with minimal inputs. Having been present in Chile since 2018 and after successful marquee projects and collaborations, the company has now officially opened a regional office in Santiago.

For the company’s CEO and co-founder Eric Valette, the new base is a natural step and confirmation of the company’s growth in recent years – and the pressing need for technological solutions in water-stressed regions. “We are delighted to officially launch our Chile office, a further step in our company’s global expansion,” says Valette. “With this strong base in Santiago, we are well-placed to help more and more in Latin America achieve significant resource efficiency and water savings through sustainable irrigation.”

Chile-Switzerland team meeting in Santiago

Swiss & Chilean institutional support

With an official entity in Chile (AQUA4D LatAm) supported by a team of agronomists, this represents a significant stride both for water efficiency in the country as well as for Swiss-Chilean relations. Institutional support, including from the Swiss Embassy, has been crucial and the smooth launch of operations serves as a model of bilateral collaboration.

“We are proud to have been able to accompany this Swiss-Chilean alliance since its inception, says Mark Untersander from Swiss Business Hub Chile. “We are convinced that the newly founded subsidiary AQUA4D LatAm will contribute to overcome the great water challenges not only in this country, but in the whole Latin American region that requires sustainable innovation.”

AQUA4D LatAm at the Swiss Embassy in Santiago de Chile

Innovative irrigation successes

AQUA4D® technology treats the water in a way which improves hydration and dissolution, with a cascade of benefits on resource use, soils and plants. Water savings of 20% on average are observed, as well as efficiencies in fertilizer use and solving long-standing salinity issues. Thanks to dissolution of minerals, continued irrigation with salt-saturated water is possible – meaning more better-quality water can be used for human consumption instead of irrigation, thus giving a tangible social benefit.

In agriculture, there have been notable successes with producers of avocados (Valparaíso), nut trees (Región Metropolitana), citrus (Coquimbo), and wine production (Valle Central), including cooperation with some of the country’s biggest producers. But beyond this, the AQUA4D’s Chile team is also working closely with municipalities including Lo Barnechea, Vitacura, Providencia and Antofagasta, for the sustainable irrigation of green areas.

“The market has enormous challenges in matters of sustainability, and water is a fundamental pillar in the challenge that Latin America currently faces,” says Felipe Villarino, CEO of AQUA4D LatAm. “That is why we are strongly focused on supporting industries that require high water demands for their development.”

Villarino has extensive collaborative international experience, and is also chair of the Chilean-Swiss Chamber of Commerce and as a former professional rugby player works with Bettersport.cl to promote sustainability in sport. He has, therefore, big ideas for expanding the reach of AQUA4D’s technology across the region. This includes developments beyond Chile, with AQUA4D LatAm already active in Peru and looking at potential projects in Mexico, Paraguay and Uruguay among others. “We see great growth potential in countries in the region where agricultural producers and local authorities are linked to sustainable water management,” he says.

With the Swiss office’s 20 years of R&D and field experience, and now a dedicated young team at AQUA4D LatAm in Santiago, interesting developments are expected in 2023 and beyond – in a region which desperately needs sustainable innovations to combat drought and salinity.

Eric Valette & Felipe Villarino at the Swiss HQ

Overseeing a key installation at Parque Bicentenario, Santiago