About us

Solvatten is a social enterprise based in Sweden and we have one mission: To provide people living in developing countries with safe and hot water in a portable, environmentally-friendly way.

We created a revolutionary way to provide clean water to under-served communities around the world and are pinpoint-focused on delivering the Solvatten Solar Safe Water System to customers, charities and distributors around the world. We have formed partnerships with like-minded organizations and micro-financing institutions in efforts to increase reach and improve affordability.

Solvatten is the brainchild of a Swedish inventor, Petra Wadström and the Solvatten story began in Australia in the early 90s, where Petra was living with her husband Carl and their family. The Wadström’s professional background was diverse, spanning both medical science and the arts, which helped spark the creative thinking behind Solvatten.

 Living in Australia, Petra was struck by the abundance and intensity of natural sunlight. She was convinced that harnessing its strength could result in better water access to those living in poverty.

Exposing water to sunlight has the effect of both purifying and heating water, eliminating many commonly-found contaminants and bacteria. Solvatten was created and subjected to rigorous initial trials. This was followed by field visits throughout Africa and Asia, where Petra and her team began conducting studies to validate the efficiency of her creation in a variety of contexts. Today, Solvatten is used in more than 20 countries around the world reaching more than 400,000 people.

Solvatten founded a charitable foundation in Sweden in 2013, focused on improving the lives of primarily women and children, who live without easy access to safe water. A few years later, Solvatten Charitable Foundation USA was created to allow for US-based giving.  Contributions made in the US are administered by the US foundation.