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Upstream

Here is where it all begins

Within all the activities our business comprises, upstream is where all of our operations begin. This term encompasses our oil and gas exploration, development, and production activties worldwide.

 

 

Two people talking with a subsoil exploration graphic in the background

Exploration

The search for oil and gas reservoirs is of the utmost importance, and we dedicate a large part of our time and technology to geology, geophysics, and environmental impact studies that help us to determine an area's potential.

Image of a ship with an oil rig

Development

We implement a collection system and run processing plants, and we ensure that extraction processes are sustainable, safe, and transparent even before beginning operations, in line with the most stringent standards.

Image of exploratory jack pump working

Production

When the facilities are ready to begin extraction operations, our teams get to work in order to use the reservoir's resources to their full potential. In addition to extracting oil and gas, we constantly perform maintenance tasks and transport hydrocarbons under the strictest conditions.

What is the upstream process?

Opportunity identification

Before exploration can begin, we need to obtain permission in the form of mineral rights. Then we can start taking measurements to identify and assess the opportunities.

Exploration

We evaluate the characteristics of the onshore or offshore discovery in order to decide on the most appropriate development model and to get a better understanding of the potential reserves so that we can move on to the next phase.

Development and production

We develop and construct the facilities necessary to achieve optimal production. We extract the reserves from the reservoir, producing oil and gas.

Where oil and gas come from

Repsol's Upstream

We generate value by focusing on improving our asset portfolio and maintaining a balance in our reserves between gas and oil, two energy sources that will continue to be important for society in the coming decades. 

We are a benchmark operator in hydrocarbon exploration thanks to the use of state-of-the-art technology, which has allowed us at the forefront of some of the greatest discoveries of the last decade.

572,000 

 barrels

of oil produced on average per day

1.916

 billion

barrels of proven reserves

70%

  of our proven reserves are gas

Emissions reduction: Our commitment to sustainability

The Upstream business aims to be a sector leader in reducing CO2 emissions by decreasing its carbon intensity by 75% in 2025.

Carbon capture and storage will play a key role in the development of new projects. In 2027, the Company will start up the storage of two million tons of CO2 per year at Sakakemang, the largest gas discovery in Indonesia in the last decade. This capture and storage project is among the largest of its kind in the world, and it will be the first for Repsol and Indonesia.

Its cutting-edge technology and the digitalization of its processes will be key for meeting these targets as well as our circular economy strategy, which includes the development of more than 60 initiatives, the majority of which are linked to the improvement of the efficiency and the innovation of processes.

We focus our activities on key geographic areas with a solid portfolio of short-cycle projects and attractive returns, where value is prioritized over production volume. It relies on its strengths, such as flexibility, efficiency, and the latest technology, to maximize its contribution to the Company.

Our onshore and offshore projects are found across a total of 15 countries

Find out where
Two Repsol employees review an exploration job.

Efficiency and digitalization in all our operations

Our objective is the optimization of resources and improving logistics management, maintenance and sizing costs.

Our goal is to optimize resources and improve logistics management, maintenance, and sizing costs.

We do this by relying on technology and digitization as well as the RISE (Resilience, Innovation, Sustainability, and Engagement) progam, which aims to increase production and the profitability of our assets. 

Working the best technology

We work to develop methods that allow us to optimize our hydrocarbon exploration and production processes using artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques. There are three main objectives in this area: reduce the time it takes to start the production process, increase efficiency, and develop technologies that assist in each phase of an oil field's life cycle.

Learn how we do it

With the best team

We have a team of experienced, highly-committed professionals that work responsibly.

Rubén Rodríguez

A leader in artificial intelligence

Rubén Rodríguez Torrado from Badajoz is 32 years old and works at Repsol. He has become a world leader in his field.

Marcellus, Amy Gilbert

The Marcellus field in the Unites States is one of the most bountiful gas production areas on the planet — and Amy is part of it.

Watch the project video
Napoleón Vilalba

A successful outcome to a great challenge

We operate at the forefront of offshore platform removal. An example of this is the YME project in Norway, lead by Napoleón Vilalba.

Watch the YME project video