One of the most important issues for oil producers in the unconventional energy market is future water management and disposal certainty. With news of earthquakes potentially caused by deep-well injection disposal, the liability and expense of trucking water off-site for disposal, and public distrust for the fracking market generally, producers need a sustainable, long-term solution for managing their water and social license to operate while maximizing profitability.
One such solution, especially advantageous when taking into account disposal costs over the long term, is to build a dedicated water treatment facility. Whether owned by a single producer or set up as a merchant facility, an on-site plant not only addresses the long-term view of water certainty but also allows for the recycling and reuse of materials. For example, there is opportunity to recover sodium chloride and calcium chloride for reuse and provide an abundance of high-purity water that can be sold back into industry.