Sherbrooke, Quebec-based Oneka Water Technologies, which received a $1 million investment from Nova Scotia venture capital Crown corporation Innovacorp in 2021, has won the Innovation Award at the International Desalination Association Conference.

Held in Sydney, Australia, the conference is the flagship event of the International Desalination Association, or IDA — a United Nations recognized non-profit looking to advance water reuse and seawater desalination technology.

Founded in 2015 by mechanical engineer Dragan Tutic, Oneka manufactures wave-powered seawater desalination systems housed inside autonomous buoys. The company started as a student project and is now aiming to sell its technology to resorts, coastal communities and the owners of private islands.

“Congratulations to all the members of our team who work every day to think and act differently to ensure a better world for future generations!” wrote Tutic on LinkedIn.

Oneka has completed much of its research and development testing in Nova Scotia, and Tutic said last year he was considering further business activity in the province, although his company does not currently have offices east of its Quebec headquarters. It has 33 employees with LinkedIn accounts.

The investment from Innovacorp was part of a $5.5 million raise that also included federal agency Sustainable Development Technology Canada.