Celanese Corporation

Celanese Corporation is a global chemicals and specialty-materials manufacturer whose operations depend on water for processing, cooling, and other industrial activities. Its water program combines facility-level measurement, risk assessment, employee training, conservation projects, wastewater treatment, and reuse. Because several manufacturing sites operate in water-stressed regions, the company applies additional analysis and planning where local water availability and quality risks are greatest.

Celanese's strongest water stewardship example is its facility-level water balance approach. The Shenzhen Apollo facility installed 15 water meters and developed a water-balance model to identify abnormal consumption and opportunities for reduction. The resulting analysis produced two projects expected to save approximately 4.6 million gallons annually, equivalent to about 17,400 metric tons of water.

At Bishop, Texas, Celanese installed reverse-osmosis treatment to recover a wastewater stream that would otherwise have been discharged. The recovered stream is reused in onsite cooling towers. Additional recycling of treated effluent enabled the facility to reuse or recycle approximately 206 million gallons in 2024 while meeting discharge limits.

The company also strengthened its risk-management process. It trained personnel to conduct facility water-balance assessments, identified 16 manufacturing sites in high- or extremely high-baseline water-stress regions, and began applying the Alliance for Water Stewardship's plan-do-check-act Water Body Risk Assessment framework. This process integrates water balances, WRI Aqueduct data, water quality, accessibility, and local conditions into facility-level planning.

One concern is that reported water-related noncompliance incidents increased from zero in 2023 to nine in 2024. This undermines an otherwise substantial year of progress and indicates a need for stronger execution of discharge control.