Global professional services firm Accenture, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and integrated energy company Ecopetrol announced today the launch of a new cloud-based water intelligence and management solution, aimed at advancing sustainability and efficiency for energy companies.

Developed by Accenture in collaboration with Ecopetrol and AWS, the solution will be housed on an open platform and will address the entire water lifecycle, including access to treatment, recycle/reuse, and disposal to enable organizations to seek water neutrality alongside net zero carbon emissions.

Julie Sweet, Chair and Chief Executive Officer at Accenture, said:

“Ecopetrol is visionary in its aspiration to achieve water neutrality—and in helping the energy industry advance toward this critical sustainability goal. We are honored to be working with Ecopetrol and AWS on this industrial-strength solution, which we will continuously evolve as technology advances and industries identify new applications.”

According to the companies, the solution will become an industry platform that creates a single source of data, connecting existing ad hoc information to water volume and quality analyses and cost optimization across the value chain to support decision making. Additionally, it will apply analytics to optimize water management and build an ecosystem where participants can share data and promote water reuse within and between industries.

Felipe Bayón, Chief Executive Officer at Ecopetrol, said:

“Our vision is for the energy industry to lead on technological solutions to achieve water neutrality. Collaboration is needed to truly ignite change because companies cannot solve environmental challenges alone. We will use this platform to accelerate our TESG (technology, environmental, social and governance) strategy, including our goals of reducing 66% of fresh water captured and zero discharges to surface water by 2045, improving the environment for the communities where we operate.”

The solution will use Accenture industry insights and cloud capabilities from AWS, including computing, storage, machine learning, and AI. It will also help Ecopetrol reduce its water footprint by providing a better understanding of how to cut the amount of fresh water it captures, and increase the reuse of produced and wastewear water in refining, exploration, and production assets.

Adam Selipsky, Chief Executive Officer at AWS, said:

“The conservation and sustainable management of water is a priority for communities and companies around the world, and through leveraging the breadth and depth of AWS, Ecopetrol and Accenture are tackling this challenge at scale. Like other sustainability initiatives, water conservation is a big data problem. By combining data from previously disparate sources across Ecopetrol’s operations, and using AWS cloud-based machine learning and artificial intelligence services, this technology will enable companies across the energy industry to achieve water neutrality.”