Nikkei Asia Prizes 2006

'Water Queen' crowned for treatment business

Known in Singapore as the "Water Queen," Olivia Lum has built a water-treatment company that lives up to her nickname.

From its humble beginnings with three employees, the company that Lum established in 1989 has grown into Hyflux Group, which is listed on the Stock Exchange of Singapore and has turned 45-year-old Lum into one of the wealthiest people in Asia.

Hyflux is involved in the reuse of wastewater and the desalination of seawater for drinking and industrial use. It now operates not only in Singapore, but also in places like China and the Middle East, where water resources are limited.

Hyflux was ahead of the curve in developing a business around water supply concerns, and it probably owes part of that to Singapore's anguish over its reliance on Malaysia for its water needs.

The company came into the spotlight in 2001, when it received an order from the Singaporean government to build and operate the first of its NEWater plants to treat wastewater.

NEWater system

The Hyflux NEWater system uses a combination of microfilters and reverse osmosis membranes to filter the water, ultraviolet radiation to sterilize it, and other technologies to remove microbes and minerals.

In 2005, Hyflux began operations in Singapore of the largest desalinization plant in Asia to turn seawater into drinking water. This desalinization plant and the NEWater systems combined now supply Singapore with around 40% of its water.

Lum first got the idea of a water treatment business when she was working for a drug company after graduating from the National University of Singapore. The firm treated its wastewater, but it was still dirty and was just being poured away, Lum said. She was certain that a business could be developed around cleaning the wastewater for reuse.

Lum sold her house and car to raise funds for the business' launch. When the company started in 1989 there were just three employees, and they worked to sell products like filters.

However, Lum soon shifted the center of focus to technological R&D and poured her efforts into the development of filtering devices, osmosis membranes and related technologies.

Hyflux listed on the Singapore bourse in 2001. By last year, the group had grown to around 700 employees and annual sales had reached S$131.5 million (US$83.4 million) - up 48% on the previous year.

In its branching out to other parts of the world, one recent accomplishment was the signing of 30-year contracts to operate water treatment plants to supply drinking and industrial water for two cities in China.

In 2003, a regional women's magazine honored Lum as Woman of the Year. In 2005, Forbes Asia listed her as the 39th richest person in Asia.