Paris Pact Broadens Scope for Circular and Low-Carbon Industry
TotalEnergies and Veolia have expanded their long-standing partnership through a new memorandum of understanding that deepens collaboration on methane mitigation, water efficiency, and resource recovery — advancing shared goals for industrial decarbonization and circular resource use.
The agreement aligns with both companies’ net-zero strategies, leveraging their respective strengths to reduce emissions and environmental impact across energy, waste, and water operations. TotalEnergies will bring its capabilities in methane detection and low-carbon energy supply, while Veolia contributes its expertise in resource recovery and industrial water management.
A key component of the partnership centers on tackling methane emissions — one of the most potent greenhouse gases — across Veolia’s landfill network. The company plans to deploy TotalEnergies’ AUSEA system, a drone-based technology designed to detect and quantify methane leaks.
Field tests at Veolia sites have shown AUSEA’s ability to deliver accurate, replicable measurements and pinpoint high-emission zones. The data will help Veolia refine capture strategies as it pursues its goal of capturing 80% of landfill methane by 2032.
By applying oil and gas measurement technology to waste management, the project extends the use of advanced leak detection into new industrial sectors, supporting global methane reduction targets under the Global Methane Pledge.
The partnership also advances TotalEnergies’ commitment to reduce freshwater withdrawals by 20% at water-stressed facilities by 2030, compared with 2021 levels. Veolia will help implement water reuse and treatment projects at the company’s refineries and chemical plants, including reusing municipal wastewater for industrial operations.
The collaboration builds on Veolia’s recent agreement with SATORP — a Saudi Aramco and TotalEnergies joint venture in Jubail, Saudi Arabia — to develop large-scale wastewater recycling. Such projects reflect a broader industry shift toward water circularity amid tightening global regulations on water stewardship and discharge quality.
Both companies are also working to cut the carbon footprint of desalination — an increasingly vital technology in water-scarce regions. Veolia aims to double its desalination capacity by 2030 while reducing the energy demand of its plants, which it says has already fallen tenfold over the past decade.
TotalEnergies will provide renewable power and low-carbon energy solutions to new and existing facilities, building on joint projects such as the 17-megawatt solar installation powering Veolia’s desalination plant in Oman, the largest of its kind in the region.
Beyond water and energy, TotalEnergies and Veolia are also turning their attention to waste streams containing strategic materials such as rare earths used in batteries, wind turbines, and solar panels. The companies will co-develop industrial processes to recover and recycle these critical inputs, supporting European and global supply-chain resilience for clean technologies.
As global demand for rare earths accelerates under the energy transition, the collaboration could help reduce dependence on virgin extraction while addressing material scarcity risks.
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Executives from both companies emphasized that their cooperation reflects a broader shift toward integrated industrial ecosystems that combine waste, water, and energy management under a unified sustainability agenda.
“By combining our expertise — whether in sustainable water management, the circular economy, or methane reduction — we are putting innovation to work for ecological transformation and industrial competitiveness,” said Estelle Brachlianoff, CEO of Veolia.
Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies, said the partnership demonstrates “how complementary technologies can deliver tangible progress in limiting our environmental footprint and accelerating the energy transition.”
For investors and policymakers, the partnership provides a model of cross-sector collaboration that merges industrial operations with environmental governance. The approach aligns with emerging EU and international frameworks promoting resource efficiency, Scope 1-3 methane tracking, and water resilience in corporate sustainability reporting.
As energy, waste, and water management become increasingly interlinked under net-zero and circular economy mandates, alliances like that of TotalEnergies and Veolia highlight how industrial-scale partnerships can translate ESG commitments into measurable environmental gains.
