Why is this important?
All waste generated by oil and gas activities must be properly managed due to concerns about the potential impacts on public health and environment resulting from improper waste management. Our activities generate solid and liquid waste, including hazardous waste, such as oily sludge, waste chemicals, catalysts, contaminated soil and construction debris. Examples of non-hazardous waste include concrete not containing dangerous substances, welding waste, water-based drilling wastes, as well as municipal waste, paper and metal. The potential impacts of our activities are related to the quantities produced and the disposal of a series of waste streams, hazardous as well as non-hazardous. We generate waste as a result of our ongoing operations, as well as from projects such as demolition and abandonment (“one-time waste”).
Our commitment
We pledge to reduce emissions, releases of pollutant substances and waste.
Each permitted site maintains waste management registers in accordance with applicable legal requirements. Our reporting tool, OMV Synergi also collects waste data. Clear responsibilities are set regarding the review and final approval of data. All waste shipment documents are archived.
The OMV Petrom Group Environmental Management Standard requires compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations, or other requirements, and alignment with internationally accepted best practices. This Standard also requires for all businesses and activities to identify and use the lowest hazardous material option as well as minimize both the use of raw materials and the subsequent generation of waste.
Our approach to waste management follows a hierarchy of priorities, namely, first prevent waste where possible; then reuse, recover and recycle it; and only as a last resort, dispose of it safely.
Waste management, along with other environmental topics, is integrated into awareness campaigns and internal workshops.
The EMS 14001 is regularly audited for surveillance / recertification.
Environmental training is provided to our staff working on-site and in charge of environmental tasks.
In 2021, OMV Petrom generated 605,172 t of total waste (2020: 537,855 t). We diverted from disposal by recycling, recovery and preparing for use 83% of the total waste generated throughout the year. The total waste amounts cover both production waste and waste from one-time projects.
The hazardous waste amounted to 333,157 t and mainly included soil from wells and facilities abandonment and tank sludge while non-hazardous waste included scrap metals and clean concrete from decommissioning activities.
In 2021, from the contaminated soil treated in our bioremediation plants, 83% resulted as bioremediated soil for use as backfill material, and 17% resulted as non-hazardous soil waste that qualified for landfill disposal.
The bioremediation infrastructure includes 11 bioremediation plants, 4 final deposits and 8 temporary storage platforms, strategically distributed throughout the country. Contaminated soil as a result of abandonment works, accidental spills, and operation works is sieved and then placed in batches at bioremediation plants. Minerals, nutrients, structural materials and water are added, and then the soil is aerated. Thus, the microbiological activity that leads to the degradation of petroleum products is stimulated. After several aeration cycles, soil samples are taken from each batch and the total oil hydrocarbon content is determined. Depending on the results of the analysis, the bioremediated soil is classified as backfill soil (which is used to fill excavations., stabilize, level) and final storage soil, which is stored in final deposits that belong either to our company or to third parties.
Surface abandonment works in Upstream – good practices applied for waste management
In 2021, we executed works for surface abandonment of 718 wells and 30 facilities in Upstream. Contaminated soil, construction waste and scrapped metallic ferrous and non-ferrous materials were the main waste streams generated. We treated 184,000 t of contaminated soil in our bioremediation plants with a recovery rate of around 83%. The clean concrete represented around 87% of the construction waste, which amounted to 53,000 t, and we delivered it for further use in OMV Petrom and outside. We recycled around 14,500 t of scrapped metallic ferrous and non-ferrous materials through authorized companies. We directed the other wastes to specialized waste facilities for either recovery or disposal.
In 2021, we performed a challenging pilot project – Subsurface abandonment of the well 805 Bustuchin. The project challenges included:
- Land slide environment
- Large area to be excavated, 27 m depth x 8 m diameter
- Working in confined space and dangerous environment
- Pilot – no similar project developed to date
The well was affected by landslide and we did consolidation works through a mining construction to reach the depth of 27 m. The land consolidation was necessary to execute cutting and reconnection of broken casings.
We successfully restored the verticality of the casings with environmental benefits including:
- Elimination of the blow out risk (well is located in the forest area and close to community)
- Avoidance of gas emissions from the well area
- Aquifer isolated in the excavation area
The project was presented at ADIPEC international event.
In Downstream Oil, we continued the high performance on waste recovery rate out of demolition projects. We achieved a 99% waste recovery rate from the demolition projects finalized in 2021 in Petrobrazi Refinery.
Site restoration for non-operational fuel terminals in Downstream – responsible management to the end-life of operations
In 2021 we completed the works for six sites, from a total of 30 former fuel terminals, with sites remediated up to initial pre-operational state, according to legal provisions in place. In addition to the 145,000 m3 of soil/subsoil contaminated with petroleum products generated and treated in the previous years, around 77,000 m3 contaminated soil were excavated and treated. The treatment is performed by site-specific methods in line with best practice (e.g., bioremediation technologies off-site, on-site, in-situ, in-situ with injection). We achieved a recovery rate of 99% for the contaminated soil treated, which we further used for on-site backfills or directed to other authorized locations. We performed periodic monitoring during and after site rehabilitation, as requested for each site by the environmental authorities. The site status (e.g., land covering by grass, soil compaction) is quarterly monitored for one year after our works are finalized.
See waste related indicators in the Performance in Detail – Environmental Performance.
The recovery rate increased to 83% in 2021 (77% in 2020) on account of increased amount of clean concrete generated and recovered from facilities’ demolition in Downstream and well abandonment in Upstream.
For the coming years, we plan to continue our decommissioning and demolition projects for Upstream and Downstream as scheduled, clean-up the land and properly manage all resulting wastes. In 2022, we will continue the site restoration for the remaining two depots Constanța and Oradea. We also plan to revise the Waste Management Plans at operational level.