Through the early years of the Shale Era, produced water gathering systems in the Permian were mostly small, simple and focused solely on transporting the salty, petroleum- and mineral-tainted water emerging from wells to nearby saltwater disposal wells. In the 2020s, though, these systems — now mostly owned and operated by third-party produced water specialists — have been becoming larger, more interconnected, and more likely to include at least some water recycling and reuse. In today’s RBN blog, we’ll continue our look at big, far-reaching produced water systems in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico.
In Part 1, we summarized what produced water is, how it’s been dealt with over the decades, and what challenges it poses to Permian E&Ps. We also noted that produced water generation in the Permian has been growing quickly — from an estimated 7 MMb/d in 2017 to 21 MMb/d currently — and that produced water volumes are likely to increase by about 1 MMb/d each year to 2030, even if crude oil production stays close to flat. And we pointed out that while the vast majority of the produced water in the Permian’s Delaware and Midland basins is still disposed of in Class II wells (aka saltwater disposal wells, or SWDs), an increasing share — about one-quarter, or 5 MMb/d — is now being recycled for reuse, typically for completing wells but also for enhanced oil recovery (EOR).
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We also described the steps that both the Texas Railroad Commission (RRC) and New Mexico’s Oil Conservation Commission (OCC) have been taking to address concerns about seismic activity caused in some specific parts of the Permian by produced water injection. Among other things, they have identified “seismic response areas” (SRAs), set limits on injection rates, and curtailed or suspended injection at certain locations. Lastly, we looked at Western Midstream’s produced water gathering and disposal network in the southern Delaware Basin and the company’s ongoing development of the new 42-mile, 800-Mb/d Pathfinder Pipeline to transport produced water to existing and planned SWDs in eastern Loving County, TX.
Today, we’ll discuss three other large systems in the Permian, each of which helps to show how much the shale play’s produced water sector has grown and evolved over the past few years.
WaterBridge
Houston-based WaterBridge has two primary elements. One is NDB Midstream, a strategic partnership between private equity firm Five Point Energy and investor-owned E&P Devon Energy that owns and operates large-scale produced water gathering, transportation, recycling and disposal assets in the northern Delaware Basin in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico and the Eagle Ford in South Texas. The other is WaterBridge Operating, a portfolio company of Five Point Energy and Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC that operates sets of similar produced water assets in the southern Delaware in West Texas and the Arkoma Basin in Oklahoma.
In the Permian, WaterBridge has more than 1,700 miles of produced water gathering and transmission pipelines (medium-blue lines in Figure 1 below) and more than 3.8 MMb/d of water-handling capacity at 160-plus facilities (SWDs, recycling plants, etc.; light-blue water drop icons). In January, NDB Midstream and WaterBridge Operating signed long-term agreements with BPX Energy — the U.S. onshore subsidiary of BP — under which the WaterBridge units will build and operate 400 Mb/d of new produced water handling capacity to support BPX’s ongoing development in the Stateline area, with the ability to increase that capacity to 600 Mb/d.
Figure 1. WaterBridge’s Existing and Planned Produced Water Assets in the Permian. Source: RBN
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About the song
“Into the Void” was written by Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward. It appears as the fourth song on side two of Black Sabbath’s third studio album, Master of Reality. The song is in the key of C#m (aka C-minor), a step and a half lower than the standard E tuning for guitars. The band employed this tuning for the first time on this album, giving it a heavier and darker sound. James Hetfield from Metallica has said “Into the Void” is his favorite Black Sabbath song. Eddie Van Halen noted the song’s main riff as a personal favorite. Void, the Washington, DC, punk band, took their name from the song. Personnel on the record were: Ozzy Osbourne (lead vocals), Tony Iommi (guitar), Geezer Butler (bass) and Bill Ward (drums).
Master of Reality was recorded between February and April 1971 at Island Studios in London. Produced by Rodger Bain, it was released in August 1971. It went to #8 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart and has been certified 2X Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. One single was released from the LP. Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler stated that “Children of the Grave” from Master of Reality was “the most kick-ass song we ever recorded.”
Black Sabbath was a British rock band formed in Birmingham, England, in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler, drummer Bill Ward and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are considered to be the founders of heavy metal music. The band released 19 studio albums, eight live albums, 13 compilation albums, three EPs and 37 singles and have sold more than 70 million records worldwide. They are members of the UK Music Hall of Fame and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. Twenty-three members have passed through the band since its formation. Founding members Osbourne, Iommi and Butler released what would be their final studio album, 13, in 2015. Brad Wild drummed on the LP. They toured on their final The End tour with drummer Tommy Clufetes in 2016-17. In July 2025, the original lineup of Black Sabbath played their final show, Back to the Beginning, in their hometown of Birmingham. The concert featured several bands along with a solo set from Ozzy Osbourne. Osbourne passed away 17 days after the last note from Black Sabbath faded out from the concert.
Ozzy Osbourne (John Michael Osbourne) was an English heavy metal singer, songwriter and media personality who was nicknamed “The Prince of Darkness.” In addition to his work with Black Sabbath, he released 13 studio albums, five live albums, seven compilation albums, five EPs and 65 singles as a solo artist. Osbourne was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist in 2024 and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He and his wife, Sharon, started Ozzfest, a highly successful heavy metal festival that ran from 1996 to 2005. It drew more than 4 million people and grossed more than $170 million over its tenure. MTV ran the successful reality television show, The Osbournes, which featured Ozzy and his family, from 2002 to 2005. Osbourne left an undeniable imprint on heavy metal music and as a media superstar. We here at RBN are saddened by the recent passing of Ozzy Osbourne and send our condolences to his family, friends, loved ones, and fans.
