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OriginClear
OriginClear, led by CEO Riggs Eckelberry, finances and operates decentralized water-treatment systems for commercial users bypassing stressed municipal...
OriginClear
OriginClear launched in 2007 as OriginOil, founded by Eckelberry and veteran technologist Nicholas Eckelberry, with an initial focus on algae-based biofuel extraction. By 2015, after a reverse merger that absorbed a legacy public shell, the company discarded its energy roots and redirected all engineering talent toward electrochemical water treatment. The firm now licenses a pooled infrastructure model — branded Water On Demand — that installs, owns, and operates small- to mid-scale systems on customer sites and charges per-gallon treatment fees. Customers cluster in food and beverage processing, agriculture, manufacturing, and commercial real estate, where tightening PFAS and nutrient-discharge limits make on-site recycling cheaper than municipal surcharges. The firm generates revenue through two channels: direct equipment sales under the Modular Water Systems brand acquired in 2022, and recurring service contracts from its managed-asset portfolio. The Modular Water Systems division ships pre-engineered, containerized treatment units for ammonia removal, disinfection, and metals precipitation, with a published project footprint spanning California produce packers, Florida retirement communities, and Gulf Coast oilfield services. As of mid-2025, OriginClear markets its Water On Demand network through a Regulation A+ offering aimed at retail investors, an unusual structure that converts service-contract fees into royalty-like streams for a public investor base. The company has disclosed a pipeline of over $300 million in potential Water On Demand projects, primarily in the American Sunbelt and Puerto Rico, though the pace of financial closing has not been independently verified. The firm operates from Clearwater, Florida, with a small distributed engineering team. In March 2024, OriginClear appointed former Wells Fargo equipment-finance executive Marc Stevens to chair its newly formed Water On Demand credit-approval committee, signaling a push toward standardized underwriting as the asset portfolio scales. The company has also announced a planned dual listing on an accredited-investor exchange alongside its OTC-traded common stock. Philanthropic activity flows through a separate nonprofit vehicle, OriginClear Foundation, which concentrates on water-disaster response in the Caribbean basin. OriginClear occupies a structural gray zone — part water-technology manufacturer, part infrastructure fund manager, part publicly traded holding company. This hybrid architecture allows the firm to raise patient capital from retail investors who would normally be locked out of infrastructure equity, but it surfaces a genuine governance tension: the same Reg A+ investors who fund asset deployment are also common-share holders in the parent, creating an overlapping claim structure that few water-sector competitors replicate.
General information
Firm type
Asset Manager
Year founded
2007
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Clearwater
Corporate office
Clearwater, FL, United States
Principals
Riggs Eckelberry
CEO
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
What is OriginClear's Water On Demand model?
Water On Demand is a fully funded, asset-owned infrastructure program where OriginClear installs and maintains water-treatment equipment on a customer's property and charges a per-gallon service fee, analogous to a solar-power purchase agreement. The firm retains title to the equipment, and the customer avoids upfront capital expenditure and operator training. OriginClear raises capital for these assets primarily through Regulation A+ offerings that market the recurring fee streams to retail investors.
What water-treatment technologies does OriginClear own?
OriginClear holds patents in electrocoagulation and electro-oxidation, two advanced electrochemical processes used to remove suspended solids, heavy metals, and biological contaminants from industrial wastewater. The acquired Modular Water Systems division supplies packaged, containerized units for applications including ammonia reduction, disinfection, and metals precipitation. The firm targets commercial flows typically between 10,000 and 500,000 gallons per day.
How does OriginClear generate revenue?
Revenue comes from two tiers: direct equipment sales under the Modular Water Systems brand, and recurring, long-term service fees from Water On Demand managed assets. Equipment sales produce a higher upfront gross margin but lumpier financial quarters. Water On Demand contracts are designed to build a base of contracted, recurring revenue that the firm characterizes as annuity-like, with inflation escalators tied to operational costs.
Is OriginClear regulated as an investment fund?
No. OriginClear is an operating company that raises deployment capital through a Regulation A+ offering, not a registered investment company under the 1940 Act. The parent company is publicly quoted on the OTC Markets and files periodic reports with the SEC. Investors who purchase shares in the Reg A+ offering acquire common stock in OriginClear Inc., not limited-partner interests in a fund.
What industries does OriginClear target for Water On Demand deployment?
Primary customer verticals are food and beverage processing — particularly fruit and vegetable packers, beverage bottlers, and meat processors where high-strength organic waste loads trigger municipal surcharges — along with commercial real estate, agriculture, and manufacturing. The firm also pursues hospitality and multifamily developers in regions facing mandatory water-reuse ordinances, particularly in Florida, Texas, and California.
Who leads the engineering and operations teams?
Riggs Eckelberry serves as CEO and has been the public face of the company since its founding. The Modular Water Systems division operates with its own product-engineering leadership from its acquisition in 2022. In March 2024, the firm hired a former Wells Fargo equipment-finance executive to chair the credit committee that underwrites Water On Demand asset deployments, indicating a shift toward formalized institutional underwriting.
What geographic markets does OriginClear serve?
The company concentrates on the American Sunbelt — Florida, Texas, California, and the broader Gulf Coast — where aging municipal infrastructure and rapid population growth drive demand for on-site treatment. It has also announced project pipelines in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, often tied to hurricane-resilience funding and the replacement of storm-damaged centralized plants.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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