Appoints Dr. Hoshang Subawalla as CEO

HOBBS, N.M., Feb. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Aquafortus, the pioneer in non-thermal, non-membrane brine concentration, announced the appointment of Dr. Hoshang Subawalla as Chief Executive Officer. The appointment signals a strategic inflection for the company as it moves past technology validation to building and operating large-scale infrastructure projects in O&G Produced Water, Mining, and hypersaline industrial wastewater markets across four continents.

Dr. Subawalla is a PhD Chemical Engineer who brings a rare combination of deep technical domain experience and seasoned operational leadership to the role. With over two decades of global executive experience at industry giants GE, Suez and Veolia, he has a proven track record of managing large-scale, complex water platforms across diverse international markets. His unique background as both a scientist and a high-level operator makes him uniquely qualified to lead AquaFortus as it deploys its revolutionary desalination technology at an infrastructure scale.

"Hoshang is the exact leader we need for the next phase of Aquafortus," said Earl Jones, DCVC Operating Partner and AquaFortus Executive Chair. "We'll always be a chemistry company at our core, but our future is building large-scale infrastructure. Hoshang is a seasoned global leader with deep technical experience and the proven ability to build world-class global teams that deliver results."

"AquaFortus has the first truly transformational approach to brine concentration in decades," said Dr. Subawalla. "With a 70% cost advantage over traditional brine concentration and the world's only non-thermal crystallizer, we aren't just improving the industry, we are rewriting the economics of desalinating hyper saline wastewater. The team at Aquafortus is outstanding and I am thrilled to lead them as we deploy our solutions at a scale, transforming costly industrial liabilities into strategic water resources."

Strengthening the Bench: New CCO and CFO Appointments
To support this global infrastructure expansion, AquaFortus has bolstered its executive bench with two key appointments:

• Iris Jancik, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO): A veteran of the desalination industry and former CEO of IBAT and of IDE Americas, Jancik specializes in building the commercial coalitions and delivery models required for multi-hundred-million-dollar water assets.
  
  
• Dave Allworth, Chief Financial Officer (CFO): With a career dedicated to water and environmental solutions, Allworth brings expertise in project-oriented business models and the project finance required for high-growth infrastructure.

With the new executive team in place, Jim Newman will transition to lead the company's most critical strategic mission: O&G Produced Water. Under Newman's tenure as CEO, AquaFortus achieved the technical milestones and market validation that made this infrastructure-scale expansion possible.

"We owe a debt of gratitude to Jim for his tireless work in positioning AquaFortus for the opportunity now in front of us," added Earl Jones. "By focusing on the Permian Basin and the O&G sector, Jim is tackling our most important strategic opportunity, ensuring we deliver critical relief to an industry facing tightening disposal constraints."

About Aquafortus
AquaFortus is a 2026 Global Cleantech 100 company delivering highly efficient brine concentration technology for the recovery of clean water and valuable minerals from hypersaline streams. Its proprietary ABX™ platform is a safe, simple, non-thermal, and non-membrane process that uses non-toxic, non-flammable absorbents and food-grade regenerants to repeatedly produce high-quality water for beneficial reuse. Serving oil and gas, mining, and power markets worldwide, AquaFortus' technology operates at salinities where conventional membranes fail and does so with the lowest energy footprint in its class - at costs up to 70% lower than leading desalination alternatives.

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SOURCE AquaFortus