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TotalEnergies and Veolia Expand their Partnership to Advance the Energy Transition and Circular Economy by Tackling Methane Emissions and Water Usage
TotalEnergies and Veolia are expanding their long-standing partnership with a renewed focus on accelerating the energy transition and advancing the circular economy.
This collaboration aims to combine the distinct expertise of TotalEnergies and Veolia to develop innovative solutions that could reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lessen their collective water footprint, making progress towards their ambitious sustainability targets.
The partnership leverages the distinct strengths of TotalEnergies and Veolia. TotalEnergies, a global multi-energy company, brings its experience in producing and marketing everything from oil and biofuels to low-carbon hydrogen and electricity.
With operations in 130 countries, TotalEnergies places sustainability at the core of its strategy. Veolia, a leader in environmental services, provides expertise in water resource management, waste and energy management, supporting ecological transformation for industries worldwide.
This combination of capabilities could create a powerful synergy for developing and deploying new environmental technologies.
Methane emissions and the circular economy
A key objective of the collaboration is tackling methane emissions from waste storage facilities. To achieve this, Veolia will utilise TotalEnergies’ AUSEA technology, a system of drones designed to accurately measure methane emissions at its landfill sites.
According to Veolia, the technology has already demonstrated its ability to detect leaks and quantify emissions. This initiative is a critical step in Veolia’s plan to capture 80% of methane emissions in its storage centres by 2032.
“I am very pleased with the agreement signed today with TotalEnergies. By combining our expertise, whether in sustainable water management, the circular economy or the reduction of methane emissions, we are putting our innovation capabilities at the service of the ecological transformation and the competitiveness of our industries."
Estelle Brachlianoff, Veolia's Chief Executive Officer
Advancing sustainable water management
The collaboration also places a strong emphasis on reducing water consumption. Veolia will lend its expertise to help TotalEnergies achieve its goal of a 20% reduction in freshwater withdrawals by 2030, compared to a 2021 baseline.
This effort will concentrate on sites located in areas of water stress and will include improving the quality of water discharge. To support this goal, wastewater reuse projects will be developed at TotalEnergies’ facilities using Veolia's advanced treatment technologies.
In parallel, Veolia is working to double its desalination capacity by 2030 while reducing the energy footprint of the technology. TotalEnergies will support this by helping to deploy low-carbon energy solutions at plants built or operated by Veolia.
A notable example of their existing cooperation is the largest solar power plant currently used for a desalination facility in Oman.
Innovation in resource recovery
Beyond emissions and water, the partnership will pool research and innovation resources to discover new methods for waste reduction and the recovery of under-utilised materials.
Many valuable chemical elements, such as the rare earth minerals found in magnets used for wind turbines, photovoltaic panels and batteries, are often lost in waste streams.
Developing processes to extract these materials could be crucial for building more resilient and sustainable supply chains. The collaboration seeks to unlock the potential of these secondary resources.
"We are delighted with this partnership with Veolia," says Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO at TotalEnergies.
"TotalEnergies has cutting-edge solutions and technologies to offer Veolia and vice versa. Together we can make a concrete contribution to the energy transition and the circular economy. We are convinced that cooperations like those we are developing with Veolia are very useful to make tangible progress and sustainably limit the environmental footprint of our companies."
By combining TotalEnergies' technology with Veolia's deep knowledge of waste and water management, the partnership creates a strategic framework for sustainable action.
This mutually beneficial arrangement allows TotalEnergies and Veolia to accelerate their progress towards environmental targets more efficiently than they could alone, potentially saving costs and resources while fostering innovation across the wider industry.
SOURCE: SUSTAINABILITYMAGAZINE
