In July 2016, Water. Desalination + reuse (Faversham House) reported that the REvivED water project, funded with €9.8 million, was getting under way within the EU research programme Horizon 2020. The aim was to find out whether electrodialysis could become the leading process for seawater desalination worldwide. Twelve pilots were planned: eight for brackish water in developing countries, two for tap water (in Germany and in the Netherlands) and two for seawater (in Spain and in the Netherlands). Fujifilm Manufacturing Europe led the project, which started in Brussels in June.
The report showed that the EU was then deliberately researching alternatives to reverse osmosis, with the stated aim of reducing the energy demand of desalination.