Case Study: Chevron achieves sustainable produced-water reuse and expanded production with Veolia North America’s OPUS® solution

Produced Water Facility Features the First-Ever Installation of OPUS

Chevron’s San Ardo oil field was generating large volumes of high‑salinity produced water (raw TDS ~6,500 ppm) that historically relied on limited deep‑well injection, constraining field development. To reduce environmental impact and expand production, Chevron engaged Veolia North America for Engineer‑Procure (EP) services and long‑term operations, deploying Veolia’s OPUS® (Optimized Pretreatment and Unique Separation) produced‑water treatment technology to meet strict reuse and discharge water quality targets.

Veolia North America implemented the first OPUS® installation and now operates a facility treating about 150,000 barrels of produced water per day, enabling up to 50,000 bpd for surface discharge and 75,000 bpd for steam generation. The system achieves the project’s water‑quality and recovery goals (e.g., TDS <510 ppm, boron <0.64 ppm, hardness <2 ppm CaCO3 and ~75% recovery), is backed by Veolia’s O&M and performance guarantee, and has reduced injection volumes, replenished local aquifers and supported expanded, lower‑risk oil production for Chevron.

Chevron