2026 AGENDA

2026 Permian basin water in energy conference

The Permian Basin Water in Energy Conference drives conversation and collaboration to advance water management – how it’s moved, reused, financed, and regulated – across the entire energy value chain.

The annual conference brings together commercial executives, engineers, innovators, policy experts, lawmakers, capital partners and regulators, all to champion responsible resource management and sustainable solutions. The 2026 conference will convene more than 50 speakers over two full days, with sessions that balance practical, current insights and long-range perspectives. 

As a program of The University of Texas Permian Basin, net proceeds directly benefit the future and UT Permian Basin students.

Schedule Overview

Thursday, April 9, 2026

Conference Day 2 (includes breakfast, lunch & networking happy hour)

8:00 AM – 4:00 PM

Bush Convention Center

105 N. Main St., Midland, TX 79701

Session topics

Wednesday, April 8, 2026

• Conference Welcome
• OPENING KEYNOTE: Water, Energy, and Capital – an Economic Outlook Shaping the Permian Basin
• Texas Water Policy in Motion: What the Legislature and TWDB are Prioritizing
  
• Legal Update & Implications – Ownership, Liability, & Reuse Agreements for Produced Water
  
• Data Centers & Produced Water – From Need to Future Opportunities
  
• LUNCH KEYNOTE: Financing Water – Public Private Problem Solving
  
• Water Quality & Permitting: What’s Changing, What’s Coming, and What to Watch
  
• Injection, Pressure and Seismicity – From Pilot Data to Operational Decisions
  
• Monitoring Technologies and Tools for Reservoir Management and Risk Forecasting
  
• Midstream Infrastructure – Balancing Volumes, Costs and Value
• Networking Happy Hour
• Keynote Dinner

Thursday, April 9, 2026

• Education, Workforce & Recruiting – Building Local Talent Pipelines
  
• Balancing the Load: Power and Produced Water Challenges in the Permian
  
• Economics and Capital: Everyone Wants More – Energy, Water and Certainty
  
• U.S. Department of Energy Perspectives on Produced Water Management
• Water and Decision-Making: A Delicate Balance
• LUNCH KEYNOTE: The Nuclear Energy & Produced Water Nexus
  
• From Waste to Worth: Unlocking Value in Permian Produced Water
  
• End Users – Exploring Downstream End Users of Treated Produced Water 
• Networking Happy Hour