Unlocking Mineral Recovery Opportunities: Reflections from a Global Forum Led by the Saudi Water Authority
CEO Dr Seb Leaper was invited to speak at the Water Research Community 2026 meeting at the University of Manchester, jointly hosted with the Saudi Water Authority.
The event was opened by Eng. Abdullah bin Ibrahim Al-Abdulkarim, President of the Saudi Water Authority and brought together senior leaders, researchers and innovators from the UK and Saudi Arabia to explore shared challenges and opportunities across water, materials and resource innovation.
Chaired by Professor Rahul Nair, the forum focused on how advanced materials and water technologies can unlock more sustainable, circular systems and how research-led innovation can be translated into real-world impact.
The meeting took place at the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre at the The University of Manchester and identified opportunities for the commercial application of our mineral recovery technologies in the region, including brine mining and battery recycling.
The following day our CTO Dr Ahmed Abdelkarim attended the Water Research Community 2026 event, also in Manchester. The event focused on how advanced materials and water technologies can enable more sustainable, circular systems. The forum explored practical routes to move technology from research to real-world impact.
At Watercycle Technologies, we believe waste streams should not be treated as an endpoint, but as a resource enabling cleaner water, stronger supply resilience and a more circular future for lithium and critical raw materials more broadly.
It was a privilege to contribute to a forum centred on collaboration between UK and Saudi expertise and to be part of a wider conversation focused on sustainability, circular economy innovation and deployment at scale.
Thank you to the Saudi Water Authority, the University of Manchester and all those who took part in an inspiring day of discussion and exchange.
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