The Israeli Center for Research and Development MATIMOP has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the UK's water industry trade association British Water. According to a report in Israel NewTech, the agreement aims to increase the British water market's access to advanced Israeli technologies in the field, as well as facilitate British-Israeli cooperation on global water tenders. Related stories: Desalination plant could make Israel water exporter 'Israel missing 2B cubic meters of water' Israel faces water contamination threat MATIMOP's Director of European Cooperations Israel Shamay called the deal an "exceptional achievement": "The agreements of the Chief Scientist implemented by MATIMOP are usually facilitated by government agencies that fund R&D projects. In this case we're talking about an agreement that was signed with the UK water supply chain association, an entity that proactively initiates projects in Britain, as well as provides solutions outside Britain, and that’s the difference," he explains. According to the report, the agreement was some time in the making, with the initial idea presented in 2009's WATEC expo. Israel’s Economic Attaché in London Noah Shani and Oded Distel, who serves as head of the "Invest in Israel" program, were closely involved in negotiating the deal. "We thought that the right way to implement the cooperation would be to outline a formal framework in which The Israeli Industry Center for R&D represents Israeli industry seeking cooperation, and British Water represents the supply chain to British water companies, which function regionally in the UK," Shamay said. "The British water industry has been privatized under Thatcher, and as private companies, they are always looking for ways to improve efficiency and be more competitive, where technology becomes a key facilitator," he added. The agreement will both advance Israeli technologies throughout the UK vis-à-vis water utilities, as well as leverage British contacts in third party countries in order to increase the cooperation between British and Israeli companies competing in international tenders. "Efficient water technologies are needed around the world, not just in Britain and the assumption is that at least in some of the cases British companies have better access to these types of tenders then Israeli companies do. Therefore, another part of the cooperation defines submitting joint proposals together to international tenders," Shamay said. "The objective is always to create added business value for Israeli industry through our innovation and technology, and this agreement expands opportunities for Israel water industry," he concludes. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter