Corría 2011 cuando el ingeniero
civil de la Universidad
Católica, Matías Sjogren,
trabajaba en un family office
buscando nuevas soluciones
agroindustriales para el manejo de residuos,
cuando en su casa en Rapel, su
padre instaló un sistema para descontaminar
el agua, el que utilizaba bacterias
que se inoculan a través del excremento
de lombrices.

Se trataba del sistema BIDA, creado
por el investigador e ingeniero civil Alex
Villagra, quien no le estaba sacando
el máximo potencial como negocio,
ya que vendía la ingeniería más que
una solución integral. Por ello, se
juntaron, conversaron y vieron que unidos
había una oportunidad para dar mayor
escalamiento industrial a la solución. Así
sumaron a Rafael Concha y, entre los tres
decidieron emprender y crear la empresa
Biofiltro, para expandir el sistema.

Y no se equivocaron. Rediseñaron el
modelo de negocios enfocado en plantas
industriales para filtrar aguas residuales
de origen industrial y domiciliario, la
cual puede ser reutilizada para riego. La
tecnología tiene la particularidad de que
es de bajo costo, no utiliza químicos y no
genera lodos ni olores, y ahorra hasta 80%
de energía en comparación a los sistemas
tradicionales, comenta Sjogren, gerente
general de la firma. Además, durante
el proceso se genera un humus que es
comercializado como fertilizante orgánico,
y que a 2017 puede llegar a representar
hasta 8% de las ventas de la empresa. Si
bien este fertilizante es de propiedad de
Biofiltro, están buscando el mecanismo
para que sea un win-win para ambas
partes, pudiendo la empresa que utiliza
el sistema llevarse un porcentaje de las
ventas o recibir un precio rebajado por
su uso como abono.

A la fecha, facturan US$ 1 millón
y esperan cerrar este 2014 con US$ 2
millones. Cuentan con 65 plantas de tratamiento
de aguas residuales instaladas
en Chile para empresas como Soprole,
Agrofoods, Cecinas Llanquihue, Minera
Los Pelambres, Bavaria, Mulpulmo, Indómita,
entre otras. Y están trabajando para
posicionarse como una empresa para el
mundo, con un agresivo plan de expansión
en Estados Unidos y Nueva Zelanda. Ese
es el foco hoy, asevera Sjogren.

Tienen cinco plantas industriales
funcionando en España, cinco en Brasil
y una en México, por medio de representantes
locales, pero se dieron cuenta de
que no era la forma correcta de crecer.
Necesitaban tener mayor presencia y
operar las plantas, de lo contrario, la
tecnología quedaba al desamparo y sin
soporte técnico. Así es que definieron los
dos países prioritarios.

Como necesitaban de recursos
frescos, a inicios de este año lograron
levantar US$ 4 millones de inversionistas
chilenos, lo que les permitió iniciar el
proceso de expansión para los próximos
dos años. De inmediato, Alex Villagra
y Rafael Concha hicieron sus maletas
para crear Biofiltro USA en Estados
Unidos, específicamente en el valle
central de California, donde instalaron
plantas pilotos. Este estado es
estratégico para validar el sistema
en el país. A juicio de Sjogren, es la
zona indicada para hacerlo, pues es
donde se concentra gran parte de la
agroindustria del país y enfrenta una
gran crisis hídrica. Además, tienen
un gran problema con las aguas subterráneas
debido a que tienen altas
concentraciones de nitratos (nocivo
para la salud humana), producto del
exceso de riego con purines (residuos)
de la industria lechera. Situación
que, acota, no está del todo regulada.
Sin embargo, señala que el estado de
California está tomando las medidas
para normarlo y fiscalizarlo, y
contempla, incluso, subsidios para
masificar la utilización de sistemas
de tratamiento de agua, lo que abre
las puertas para el ingreso de la
solución chilena. También tiene una
de las regulaciones más exigentes
del país, lo que les dará mayor peso
comercial a la hora de llegar a otros
estados o países.

Están avanzando rápido, señala.
Ya tienen instaladas cinco plantas
piloto en diferentes industrias, que
les están permitiendo dar a conocer
la tecnología y contar con las aprobaciones
regulatorias respectivas. Y
están próximos a cerrar un contrato
para construir la primera instalación
industrial. La meta de la firma es
instalar 20 plantas a 2017, lo que
implicaría ventas por US$ 20 millones,
y en el mediano plazo abordar
otros estados del país del norte.

Oficina en Nueva Zelanda

Los recursos levantados también les
servirán para profundizar y dar mayor
dinamismo al mercado de Nueva
Zelanda, país al que llegaron en 2009.
Actualmente han desarrollado ocho
plantas de tratamiento –cinco municipales
y tres en lecherías–, y el plan
de negocios contempla construir 18
sistemas a 2017. Para Matías Sjogren,
pese a que éste es un país pequeño,
tiene mucho potencial debido a que
es un gran consumidor de tecnologías
sustentables y con las regulaciones
ambientales más exigentes. Ejemplifica
que cada casa, condominio o empresa,
independiente de su tamaño, está
incorporando plantas de tratamiento
con tecnologías avanzadas, lo que
representa una enorme oportunidad
para el negocio.

Back in 2011, the Civil Engineer graduate from Chile’s Catholic University, Matías Sjogren, was working in his a family office, seeking agro-industrial solutions for waste management. While at home one day in Rapel, his father installed a system for decontaminating water which used bacteria inoculated by the excrement of earthworms.

The system his father had installed was the BIDA system, created by the researcher and Civil Engineer, Alex Villagra. At that time, Villagra was not getting the maximum potential out of his business, primarily because he was selling the engineering side of things rather than seeking a more comprehensive solution. As a result, Sjogren and Villagra met, they talked, and soon realized that by working together there was an opportunity to improve the scalability of the idea. As such, Rafael Concha joined the endeavor and between the three of them they decided to create the company Biofiltro, as a way of expanding the system.

And they were not mistaken. They redesigned the business model focusing on industrial plants for filtering wastewater from both industry and households, which could then be reused for irrigation. As Sjogren, General Manager of the firm, explains, the technology it uses has the distinctive feature of being low cost, it does not use chemicals and does not generate sludge or odors, in addition to producing energy savings of up to 80% compared to more traditional systems. Furthermore, a peat humus is generated during the process which is then sold as organic fertilizer. By 2017, the sale of this fertilizer could account for almost 8% of company sales. While the fertilizer is owned by Biofiltro, the firm is looking for an external partner mechanism by which a win-win situation can be attained for both parties. Such a situation would allow a participating business that uses the system to either take a percentage of sales or receive a reduced price for its use as fertilizer.

To date, the company has a turnover of US$1 million, and by the end of 2014 this figure is expected to reach US$2 million. It has 65 wastewater treatment plants installed across Chile for companies including Soprole, Agrofoods, Cecinas Llanquihue, Minera Los Pelambres, Bavaria, Mulpulmo, Indómita, among other. Biofiltro is working to position itself as a global company, with aggressive expansion plans for the United States and New Zealand. This is their current focus according to Sjogren.

It has five industrial plants operational in Spain, five in Brazil and one in Mexico, via local representatives. However, its founders have realized that this was not the ideal way to grow the business. They needed greater presence and control over plant operations, without which the technology would simply sit idle and lack ongoing technical support. As a result, they devised a list of priority countries.

In need of new funding, at the beginning of the year they managed to raise US$4 million of Chilean investment, which has enabled them to begin the expansion process over the next two years. Immediately, Alex Villagra and Rafael Concha packed their suitcases and headed north, to create Biofiltro USA in the United States. They specifically targeted the Central Valley of California, where they had installed a number of pilot plants. The state of California is a strategic location in terms of validating the system in the United States. According to Sjogren, it is the perfect place to implement the initiative, because the state is where a large part of the country’s agro-industry is based and it is currently facing a large-scale water crisis. In addition, there is a big problem with underground water due to high concentrations of nitrates (unsafe for humans), the result of over-irrigation with animal waste by the dairy industry. This situation, he notes, is not entirely regulated. However, he points out that California is taking steps to regulate and supervise the practice, and is even debating subsidies for expanding the use of water treatment systems, which would open the door to the Chilean solution. The state also has one of the strictest regulatory systems in the country, which will lend the company additional commercial weight when entering additional states or countries.

The company is making swift progress, according to Sjogren. They already have five pilot plants installed across different industries, which ensures they have all the necessary regulatory approvals in place. This situation also allows them to fully assess the technology. They are currently close to signing a contract to construct their first industrial installation. The company target is to install 20 plants by 2017, requiring sales of US$20 million. In the medium term, they plan farther expansion into additional US states.

New Zealand Office

The investment raised in 2014 is also useful for strengthening their position and ensuring greater dynamism within the New Zealand market, where they arrived in 2009. They have currently developed eight treatment plants in the country – five for local governments and three in the dairy industry – and the business plan contemplates the construction of 18 systems by 2017. For Matías Sjogren, despite New Zealand being a small country, it has great potential. This stems from its high consumption of sustainable technologies and its incredibly strict environmental regulations. He points to the example that every house, condominium or company, regardless of its size, is incorporating treatment plants with advanced technology. As a result, it represents a huge opportunity for Biofiltro.