Both Australia and the US have started processes to open more land for geothermal exploration.

In Australia, the state of Victoria has opened 19 areas totaling more than 154,000 square kilometers. This augments the existing 12 licenses covering 74,000 square kilometers over 13 different exploration areas. Victoria has a target to harvest 10% of their energy needs from renewable sources by 2016 and geothermal harvest is key to that plan.

In the US, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has implemented its new process to expedite the nomination and subsequent competitive bidding for geothermal leases. In order to nominate a parcel, an application (Department of the Interior BLM Form 3203-1) is filed describing the tract along with a $100 fee plus $0.10 per acre. Nominations have been accepted in Nevada, Oregon, Utah, California, and Montana.

Oregon and Washington will be holding a competitive geothermal lease sale, tentatively scheduled for June 12. California and Nevada are currently planning a sale for July 15.

Geodynamics Test Site in Cooper Basin

Attribution: Geodynamics

For those of you not in the know, HFR is hot fractured rock. The latest incarnation of HDR (hot dry rock) or EGS (enhanced geothermal system.) Pioneered in the early 1970’s at the Fenton Hill, New Mexico site, HDR is the process of introducing water into a known hot rock bed, inducing fractures in that rock bed to create a reservoir, and then harvesting the steam that results from the contact between the super hot rocks and the water through production wells.

The Fenton Hill project was shut down years ago, but the concept has taken on new life in Australia where no fewer than 32 companies are now working in the Cooper Basin to find a way to mine the heat, convert it to electric power, and transmit it to consumers.

Here in the US, the HFR et al view was featured prominently in an exhaustive report assembled by MIT and published last year stating that if commercial drilling could cost effectively reach the 10km depth, over 100,000MWe of geothermal electricity generation would be accessible to harvest. Australia though, is really taking this to heart as the Cooper Basin is an enormous, known hot granite area with temperatures in excess of 250C at 4km depth. Also, the basin has a “cap rock” geology, meaning that once a system is stimulated, the steam won’t leak to the surface, it needs a clear path, the kind that is created by drilling a production well.

Anatomy of Habanero 3

Attribution: Geodynamics

Geodynamics, Limited is a leader in working HFR project toward commercial viability and operation. To date, Geodynamics has drilled three deep wells, Habanero 1, 2, and 3 to depths of over 4km. Recently the company announced that it had been able to successfully inject water into the reservoir, increase the fracture size, and produce steam at pressures of over 14MPa (~2,000 psi) and flow rates of 27kg/second. This is sufficient to supply their 1MWe test harvest plant planned for installation and operation this year.

The next step for Geodynamics is to drill 9 wells (4 injection and 5 production) to supply a 50MWe electricity generation facility and advance the transmission projects to bring the power to market. Finally, the company plans to scale up by adding nine more 50MWe facilities, bringing the project’s total output to 500MWe by 2016.

While this is a great vision and by all accounts, Geodynamics and others are making progress toward realizing the vision, there are challenges and risks. One of the biggest challenges and risks has to do with “connectivity” – which means, when water is injected into the reservoir, is the steam from the injected water coming back out? And if so, how much of the injected water is being recovered as usable steam? These fractures aren’t highly controllable and thus in most HFR projects there is a significant shortfall between mass of injected fluid and mass of recovered steam.

Also, in this area of Australia, water is a scarce resource. Since the reservoirs that do exist in the rock naturally are not of production quality and there is little chance of refresh, the gamble is on the water in a relatively shallow aquifer holding out while Geodynamics and other companies compete for the water resource.

Even with the challenges and risks, this is an exciting and vital segment of the geothermal industry.

HT: Bruce Wilcox

Date: Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Location: Porter Hall, Wendell Chino Building, 1220 South Saint Francis, Santa Fe, NM
Time: 8:00am – 4:30pm

Meeting Overview:

This meeting will provide a forum on the exchange of information concerning the development of geothermal energy projects in New Mexico. Topics include but are not limited to: Ground Source Heat Pump Technology, Direct Use, District Heating Applications and Electricity Production.

Specific Goals of the Meeting Include:

➢ Updates on Strategic Planning action items for the working group
➢ Status of geothermal projects in NM
➢ Identify and discuss challenges concerning geothermal development in NM
➢ Sustainability of GSHP systems
➢ Discussion of drilling techniques and costs

Tentative Schedule:

8:00am — Sign in, Welcome
8:30am – Noon — Presentations
Noon – 1:30pm — Lunch on your own
1:30 – 2:30pm — Presentations
2:30 – 4:00pm — Round Table Topics
4:00 – 4:30pm — Action Items, Adjourn

Information and Questions:

Steve Lucero 505.476.3324
stephen.lucero@state.nm.us

Not that it wasn’t expected, but it’s always nice for a developer to report that they’ve hit steam while drilling. Western GeoPower is developing the old Unit 15 site at the Geysers. According to their release, they’ve reached a depth of 2,150m (~7,000′) and are able to produce 63,500kg/hour (~140,000lb/hour) of steam.

The well is not yet complete, its planned depth is 3,350m (~11,000′) and it is hoped that each well in the field will produce in excess of 3MWe.

This is time sensitive folks, if you want to participate, RSVP TODAY to go.geothermal@go.doe.gov – since time is short, comments may also be submitted via email to the same address before April 28.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Program (GTP) is seeking input from the oil/gas and geothermal community (industry, academia, etc.) to assist in the development of two Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) and a Request for Information (RFI), as summarized below.

You are invited to participate in a pre-solicitation meeting scheduled for April 25th in Houston, Texas at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, lower level conference room, beginning at 9:00 AM. We will be reviewing our plans for two funding opportunities and a RFI. We value your input on the construct of a reconstituted geothermal effort focusing on Enhanced Geothermal Systems prior to final decisions made by the Department. If you are unable to participate at this event in person, you are encouraged to provide input through email, as described below.

DRAFT Funding Opportunity Announcement FY08: Enhanced Geothermal Systems Research, Development, and Reservoir Stimulation

Topic Area 1: Enhanced Geothermal Systems Technologies – This topic area seeks projects that address key aspects of engineered reservoir creation, management, and utilization, by developing tools and techniques useful to temperatures up to 300°C and depths as great as 10,000 meters. Areas of interest include: zonal isolation; down-hole pumps; fracture characterization; image fluid flow; tracers and tracer interpretation; high-temperature logging tools and sensors; and stimulation prediction models. These technology improvements are discussed in greater detail in the report, “An Evaluation of Enhanced Geothermal Systems Technology,” posted on the DOE website: https://www.eere.energy.gov/geothermal/pdfs/evaluation_egs_tech_2008.pdf.

Topic Area 2: Enhanced Geothermal Systems Reservoir Stimulation – This topic area seeks projects that demonstrate stimulation techniques that successfully establish inter-well connectivity at viable flow and heat extraction rates for commercial EGS production using techniques such as hydraulic stimulation.

Comments in response to these topic areas can be provided to the DOE Golden Field Office as an attachment to an e-mail message to go.geothermal@go.doe.gov. Please provide comments by April 28th.

DRAFT Funding Opportunity Announcement FY08: Institutional Challenges

Topic Area 1: Geothermal National Data Center – GTP is seeking to award one grant on a competitive basis to develop a data center that has reliable and accurate data on geothermal resources. The data center will support a wide range of development and utilization of geothermal resources. The Applicant will be responsible for collecting, maintaining, and disseminating information in the public domain. The Applicant will also be responsible for incorporating best practices from the information technology industry. The Applicant should also include a proposal for a classification system that will provide industry and investors a clearly defined framework to evaluate geothermal prospects and establish a common industry language for geothermal development.

Topic Area 2: Industry Communications – GTP is seeking opportunities to coordinate efforts and share information with domestic and international partners engaged in research and development of geothermal systems and related technology.

Topic Area 3: Geothermal Curriculum Development and International Student Exchange – U.S. industry needs new geothermal professionals to meet the demands of the growing geothermal development market. GTP is seeking to award grant funding, on a competitive basis, to develop geothermal educational curriculum for an institute of higher education. The institute will serve as an educational resource to students in relevant fields of study, and the data generated by the facility shall be available to students and the general public. The curriculum development would include sponsoring a student exchange with participating foreign universities. Students who utilized this curriculum would gain first hand knowledge through classroom education in the U.S. and a foreign country, field work, a National Lab or industry internship in geothermal research and development, policy, regulatory, and/or environmental issues.

Comments in response to these topic areas can be provided to the DOE Golden Field Office as an attachment to an e-mail message to go.geothermal@go.doe.gov. Please provide comments by April 28th.

Request for Information DE-PS36-08GO38003: Enhanced Geothermal Systems Technologies Validation Site(s)

The Department of Energy is seeking information from the geothermal community to assist in the development of a possible Funding Opportunity Announcement, acquisition, or other procurement option in regard to establishing Enhanced Geothermal Systems Technologies Validation Site(s). This will facilitate high risk technology development, validation, and deployment by participating organizations that would not otherwise take place at a commercial geothermal field. The information gathered from this RFI will be used by DOE for internal planning and decision making purposes, and will not be released to the general public.

The RFI will be listed at https://e-center.doe.gov/iips/faopor.nsf/Solicitation%20By%20Program%20Office?OpenView&Start=1&Count=30&Expand=3#3 for comment. Comments in response to this RFI must be provided to the DOE Golden Field Office as an attachment to an e-mail message to RFI-08GO38003@go.doe.gov. Comments must be provided no later than 8 p.m. EDT, on May 30, 2008.

The Department thanks you for your assistance and input.

Thanks to Liz Battocletti of Bob Lawrence & Associates for distributing this message.