Water reclamation services firm STW Resources Holding Corp. is planning pilot projects in the Permian Basin of West Texas to process produced oilfield water. The Midland, TX-based firm said its mobile processing unit will handle up to 500 barrels of water per day for up to 10 days per site. Some of the processed water could be used for hydraulic fracturing (fracking).

The company said it anticipates that it will perform at least five pilot projects of various duration for different oil companies within a 30-day period. The company’s pilot equipment is engineered and operated by Bob Johnson & Associates, one of STW’s engineering partners.

STW Resources’ technology cleans produced and/or brackish water (water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater) from underground aquifers to operator’s various specifications required in the drilling and fracking operations of oil and gas wells. The technology is capable of removing sulfates, hydrocarbons, iron, magnesium, hydrogen sulfide and other contaminants, STW Resources said.

Further removal of chlorides from brackish water results in potable water suitable for human consumption, according to the company. This water, previously not utilized, is being introduced into the ecosystem by the company. Processed water will be reused by the operator for drilling or fracking.

“The deployment of the pilot technology puts the company in a position to demonstrate in the field that we can clean any type of water,” said STW Resources CEO Stanley Weiner. “We believe the pilots will show the effectiveness of our technology and establish STW as a leading water services company in the Permian Basin, a region with one of the highest concentration of wells in the United States.

Pilots represent the final phase required to procure water reclamation contracts from oil and gas customers, STW Resources said. The company is in various stages of contract negotiations with several operators for fixed and/or mobile systems to process and reclaim volumes of water ranging from 5,000 to 60,000 barrels per day. Revenues from these projects are said to range from 25 cents to $1.00-plus per barrel, depending on water chemistry and partnering economics.