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Water management

Water management

Water is an essential resource for life, and we are therefore committed to using it efficiently, preventing risks, and minimizing impacts. As such, we manage water with the aim of seeking out new solutions at the operational level to minimize consumption, use it responsibly, and preserve the quality of the receiving bodies.

CEO Water Mandate logo

Endorsing the CEO Water Mandate

We bolstered our commitment to address global water challenges by joining the CEO Water Mandate. This is an initiative led by the United Nations Global Compact in collaboration with the Pacific Institute concerning water, sanitation, and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Thus, we are showing our corporate effort and responsibility towards progress and continuous improvement in these six core areas of water stewardship:

  1. Direct operations
  2. Supply chain and watershed management
  3. Collective action
  4. Public policy
  5. Community engagement
  6. Transparency
Water management chart

Repsol Water Tool: Our risk analysis tool

We use the Repsol Water Tool (RWT) to assess the risks associated with water. This includes both internal risks (measurement quality, types of water use, treatment technologies, etc.) and external risks (availability, quality, and ecosystems that are withdrawal sources or discharge receiving bodies, future water availability, regulatory and business risks, etc.). This tool enables us to identify businesses and facilities where a greater management effort must be made and the needs for action that are a priority.

Our goals

Although the industrial transformation process will require an increase in our water needs, through the Water Zero project, in the industrial complexes on the iberian peninsula we are committed to:

By 2030

not to increase freshwater withdrawal*​

By 2035

reduce freshwater withdrawal by 30%*

By 2050

achieve the ambition of net zero freshwater withdrawal*

* Which comes from conventional water resources (environment), compared to the 2022 baseline

At the Marcellus (U.S.) Exploration and Production asset, we are committed to:

By 2030

to increase water reuse by up to 10%*, achieving a 5%* by 2026

By 2035

regenerate the natural capital of the ecosystem in this environment, reaching the ambition of net zero freshwater withdrawal*

* Compared to 2022 baseline and planning

Water indicators

The following infographic reflects how Repsol manages water in accordance with the reporting requirements established by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standard and the new metrics required by the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The aim is to facilitate public access to annual data and to communicate in a transparent manner what are the significant impacts on water and how these are managed.

Annual data 2025

Third Party - Effluent reuse In all areas In areas of water stress 20.207 4.346 27 10.599 Consumption Repsol - Water withdrawal by region Withdrawal Withadrawls Water interaction Operation Effluent Discharge Disposal In all areas In all areas In areas of water stress In areas of water stress Groundwater Produced water from owned operations Third Party - Effluent reuse Progress has been made in 2025 as planned toward achieving the established intermediate milestones, in line with the goal of net-zero freshwater withdrawal from conventional environmental sources by 2050 for the Refining and Chemicals facilities located on the Iberian Peninsula and for the Marcellus E&P asset in the United States by 2035. In 2025, the indicator for freshwater withdrawal from conventional environmental sources for Refining and Chemicals on the Iberian Peninsula was 39.7 Hm3 and for Marcellus was 0.27 Hm3, representing a 10.4% and 84.1% reduction, respectively, compared to the 2022 baseline. Disclosure 303-3 Disclosure 11.6.5 CSRDESRS E3​ Disclosure 303-1 GRI303-5 2.457 10.576 21 Deep wellinjection 3.642 115 Seawater 287.082 30.889 51.096 285.192 289.539 10.570 10.598 4.898 15.496 Surface water 8.708 1.052 Freshwater* 6% 94% Rest of the world Spain Type of water Freshwater* Non freshwater (salty**) Produced water (salty**) All types of water Legend Non-water stressed areas Areas of water stress (***) Water stress not applicable Water discharge Total volume of water withdrawal Disclosure 303-4 Disclosure 303-2 CSRDESRS E3​ CSRDESRS E3​ CSRDESRS E2​ Third-party 33.694 Surface water 13.789 Recycled and reused water 17.131 5 118 Total water recycled 17.254 2.561 1 35 Total water reused 2.596 18.449 35.599 29.947 15.496 942 288.834 10.686 289.539 10.597 2.457 287.082 10.576 21 15.245 13.789 8.320 312 14.842 9.548 862 115 284.658 2.434 4.510 388 160 4.898 10.599 801 2.571 251 29 15.496 395 3.642 193 Effluent treatment No treatment Primary Secondary Hydrocarbon COD Suspended solids Tertiary 230 ton 2.637 ton 622 ton Pollutants 312 160 Seawater 14.842 9.548 284.658 Third-party 6.943 862 29 2.561 CSRDESRS E3​ CSRDESRS E3​ Total water stored Changes in storage 702 226 Water stored 0% 56% 24% 20% Water volume data in thousand m3. Water stressed areas are considered water risk areas. They correspond to those locations where the water stress indicator according to the Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas (WRI) is high or extremely high. According to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the water stress assessment only applies for those assets that have been identified as material in relation to water. *** Areas of high-water stress: Applies only to those areas where activities are located for which water has been identified as a material topic. ** Non freshwater: Total Dissolved Solids > 1000 mg/l * Freshwater: Total Dissolved Solids <= 1000 mg/l Repsol - Water withdrawal and discharge by business Withdrawn Withdrawn 66% 28% 19% 7% 2% Refining Chemical Client & others Low Carbon E&P <1% 1% 0% 0% 1% <1% 1% Discharged Freshwater* Nonfreshwater** Discharged 75% 12% Land 395 193 i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i 6% 10% 2% 71% 27% 72% i

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Main lines of action

The roadmap for water management is deployed in concrete actions. These are the four lines of action:

Pictograma reutilización agua

External reuse

We encourage the use of alternative sources of water that do not come directly from the environment.

Pictograma refinería eficiente

Efficient use

We work to reduce and optimize water consumption across our range of activities.

Pictograma reutilización agua

Internal reuse

We use the latest technologies that allow us to obtain high quality treated water for reuse in our operations.

Picto sostenibilidad

Reduced impact of discharges

We comply with increasingly demanding external requirements and internal standards, with the aim of reducing the impact on the natural environment.

A collaborative approach

Water management should follow an approach that builds joint relationships between stakeholders and regulators for more effective management strategies that prevent risks and mitigate impacts.

Public advisory panel meeting

Maintaining channels for dialogue with our stakeholders

At Repsol, we open channels of communication between society and the Company, such as the Public Advisory Panel for the different industrial complexes, through which the concerns of local residents about safety, health, and the environment, including water, can be heard and conveyed.

Válvulas de seguridad desmontadas

Water management in LPG plant maintenance

 

Water is the main resource used in the inspection and/or maintenance of pressure equipment such as tanks and spheres at LPG plants. During maintenance of the spheres, it is necessary to fill them with water (up to 6,000 m3) to perform pressure tests and other checks required by current regulations.

The business has defined a water management strategy to optimize its use, minimizing both consumption and discharge in line with our environmental policy and the principles of circular economy it establishes. This strategy is based on reusing water from the Fire Protection (FP) tanks to fill the spheres and, afterwards, returning the water to the same tanks, taking into account the minimum water reserves required for FP during these maintenance operations. This ensures an immediate response to any safety event, since the rest of the plant remains in operation during these maintenance tasks.

Puertollano industrial complex

Industrial wastewater regeneration with a focus on zero liquid discharge (ZLD)

At Technology Lab, we work on projects to maximize the regeneration and reuse of industrial wastewater, to achieve net zero freshwater withdrawal from conventional water resources (environment) by 2050 at our industrial assets in the iberian peninsula.

In 2023, the consortium formed by several European companies, including Repsol as an industrial partner in the Refining sector, presented “R3volution”, a project with a time frame from 2024 to 2027, aimed at developing and demonstrating a technological solution that enables the reuse of more than 90% of industrial wastewater, while also recovering value-added solutes in the process and maximizing energy integration using residual heat.

To accomplish this, a 2 m3/h pilot plant will be installed and operated to treat the effluent from the Puertollano industrial complex using an innovative Zero Liquid Discharge sequence, including technologies for recovering solutes from brines.

Escatrón (Spain)

Water recycling in the Escatrón Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) plant

With the aim of further adapting the best available techniques, since 2025 the CCGT plant in Escatrón (Zaragoza) has increased water volume recovery, including the recycling of part of the discharge corresponding to boiler purges (initially estimated at 40% of the total). This effluent is diverted to settling ponds, together with water withdrawn from the Ebro River, where the treatment applied to the plant's water cycle (settling, filtration, disinfection and aeration) begins for subsequent reuse.

This measure seeks to optimize the use of water resources, such as freshwater withdrawal from the environment, promote the circular economy and reduce the environmental impact of effluent discharge.

Eagle Ford plant in Texas, USA

Water treatment and reuse

The water treatment and reuse project at our Eagle Ford asset, in South Texas, has been recognized in the Environmental Management category by the South Texas Energy & Economic Roundtable (STEER) and Texas Oil & Gas Association (TXOGA) at the 12th Annual Eagle Ford Excellence Awards.

This is a mobile water treatment facility for reuse, which has reduced truck traffic and the need for water disposal, as well as minimized reliance on groundwater resources. The water undergoes a chemical and mechanical treatment process removing visible hydrocarbons, iron and stabilizing pH levels to the optimum quality needed to be used again for subsequent activities.

Between August 2023 and May 2024, Repsol treated more than 657,000 barrels of water.

La Pampilla Refinery, Peru

La Pampilla Water Footprint

La Pampilla refinery has obtained the independent Verification Declaration of its water footprint, according to the requirements of the ISO 14046 standard.

The water footprint assessment conducted in accordance with this standard:

  • Is based on the life cycle analysis
  • Identifies potential water-related environmental impacts
  • Includes geographic and temporal dimensions
  • Identifies the amount of water consumption and changes in water quality
  • Uses hydrology knowledge

This milestone marks a starting point in the verifiable measurement of the Water Footprint and will allow the deployment of actions for the improvement and sustainable management of the water resource.

Water treatment plant

Reusing water from alternative sources

At the Tarragona Industrial Complex, we use regenerated water from the municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), which reduces the amount of water withdrawn from the environment. Under normal operating conditions, more than 10% of the total flow of water withdrawn comes from the municipal WWTP.

Cartagena refinery

Efficiency improvement

The water use efficiency at the Cartagena Refinery makes us a European leader in the sector, with a water consumption ratio 26% lower than the average for other refineries. 

Such great results, which are based on data from the European organization of oil companies for the protection of the environment and health (Concawe), have been achieved thanks to the implementation of specific measures included in the water plan of the industrial complex.

Technicians at Repsol's Technology Lab

Technology Lab (Spain)

At the Technology Lab water treatment technologies are evaluated to minimize the environmental impact of the effluents from our activities, determined by the presence of certain substances.

In the case of nitrogen content removal, moving bed biofilm reactor technologies (MBBR) improve on traditional technologies, reducing operating costs and space requirements for treatment, and improving discharge quality. This technology has been validated by the TechLab team at laboratory scale with successful results in its application to the particularities of the water streams of our operations.

To further improve the process, these tests have validated the use of another internal waste stream to perform this nitrogen removal operation, avoiding the consumption of commercial chemicals and thus creating a more efficient process.

Puertollano Refinery

Internal water reuse

We have implemented a technological solution for water treatment through clarification with micro-sand filters. In this way, we managed to increase the water recirculation ratio of the refinery itself and minimize the collection and dependence on water from the environment. We also managed to improve the quality of the water discharged into the Ojailén river.

Margarita plant aerial view

Reducing the impact of discharges

We built a new water treatment plant at our Margarita gas production field in order to be able to have the technology to treat the water and achieve the quality specifications for the injection process in the event of a sudden increase in the volumes of formation water produced.

A worker looking through a pair of binoculars

Development of a hydrogeological study in Bolivia

As an example of a detailed study of the water supply sources in the areas where we operate, the Hydrogeological Analysis of the Margarita-Huacaya Field was conducted. This study assessed the underground water resources in the area including their availability and evolution, while analyzing fluctuation and weather dependency and checking the sustainability of the system. 

The results allowed us to see how the aquifers in the area worked, control the available resources, assess the impact of extractions on underground water, and optimize the distribution of the sources in an environmentally sustainable way.

Marcellus Shale in the United States

Sustainable water management

We are committed to a responsible and sustainable water management strategy that includes:

  • Risk analysis before choosing the location of gas wells to protect groundwater resources before, during, and after drilling
  • Recycling of produced water for reuse in the development of new wells
  • Safe water storage
  • Encouraging the transport of water by pipelines instead of trucks

We establish an ongoing dialogue with communities, landowners, and regulators to address concerns and share our water management plans.

View of the Camisea facilities

Blue certificate in Block 57

Acknowledgement awarded by the National Water Authority (ANA), which has been obtained thanks to the measurement, reporting, and reduction of the water footprint and the development of a shared value project with the communities. Thanks to this project, the ecological and participatory restoration of exploratory platforms was carried out, which managed to recover the ecological integrity of the forest, essential for the conservation of local water resources.

More information on sustainability

A bird perched on a branch

Biodiversity
Elena solar farm in Chile

Environmental Policy

Updated as of May 2026