Coretrack Deeper faster cheaper geothermal drilling

The Climate Spectator has an article on a company looking to make geothermal drilling a lot cheaper - Deeper, faster, cheaper.

The transformation of Australian industry into a low-carbon economy is often said to depend on the development of smart and high technology, but some of the country’s most prospective clean energy resources could be unlocked by some good old-fashioned mining know-how.

A Kalgoorlie-based drilling company, Coretrack, believes new drilling technology that it is has unveiled in the past two months could shave millions of dollars off the costs of drilling for geothermal resources, and enable aspiring developers to prove up resources at a fraction of the cost they currently face.

If proven, it will be a critical breakthrough for the Australian geothermal industry, which has been stranded at the starting gate because of the huge up-front costs of drilling programs, and the reluctance of investors to commit large sums to high-risk new technology.

A total of seven geothermal firms have received promises of $50 million funding grants from the federal government under its Geothermal Drilling Program. But these monies remain largely untouched, because none of the five recipients in round two of the program – allocated in late 2009 – have been able to provide matching funding.

Drilling for geothermal wells can cost $15 to $20 million, and Australian developers have been frustrated by the lack of rigs in the country and the “premium” rates demanded by rig owners to ship to Australia. Only Geodynamics owns its own rigs – at a cost of more than $40 million – and this is now being used by joint venture partner Origin Energy to pursue shallower geothermal resources in the Cooper Basin.

Coretrack has spent four years as a listed R&D company – an adventurous place to be in Australia – but is now looking to cross over into commercialisation. It pocketed its first revenues last month, with a $711,000 contract with Woodside for a 20-day program to build a shallow and wide hole using the GT3000 rig.

The GT3000 is the brainchild of Coretrack director Warren Strange, who in between coming to grief in Dakar rallies on his motorbike, built up a large drilling business before selling out to Brandrill for an estimated $26 million. He kept one subsidiary, Globedrill, and an idea to build the fastest, most compact and manoeuvrable, most affordable deep drilling rig in the world, and one designed specifically for the geothermal industry.

Coretrack says the GT 3000 has been achieving hard rock penetration rates of more than 30 metres an hour, many times faster than the existing platform-based drill rigs. It has used just a three-man crew and consumed only 14.6 litres of diesel per hour, compared to as much as 600 litres per hour used in competing oil and gas rigs.

The Salamander 1 well drilled by Panax Geothermal in South Australia in 2010 reached a depth of 4025 metres after 42 days and at a cost of $15 million. That equates to an average drill rate of 95 metres a day at a cost of $3,750 per metre. It says the GT3000 could have done the same job in half the time and half the cost.

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Ethiopia Launches Geothermal Power Project

CleanTechnica has a post on Ethiopias plans to harness large scale wind and geothermal power - Africa at the Energy Crossroads: Ethiopia Launches 6 Wind, 1 Geothermal Power Project.

Ethiopia isn’t a country that comes up often when discussing renewable energy, but the Ethiopian Electric Power Coroporation (EEPCO) this past week announced it’s starting construction of six wind power projects and one geothermal power plant. In total, electricity generation capacity for the renewable energy projects totals more than one gigawatt (1 GW), Ethtiopian news service NewsDire reported.

The renewable energy projects are part of EEPCO’s plans to increase national electricity generation capacity five times by 2015, from a current 2000 megawatts (MW) to about 10,000 MW. Increasing electricity generation, in turn, is key to the government’s broader economic development plans.

Ethiopia’s considers itself a “powerhouse of Africa.” Comprising three climate zones, it ranks second in Africa in terms of hydropower potential, after the Democratic Republic of Congo, and exports significant amounts of electricity to its East African neighbors. Ethiopia’s Water and Energy Minister in March announced a plan to add 5,250 MW of electricity generating capacity by building the Grand Millennium Dam of Ethiopia, which would dam the Nile River near the border with Sudan.

EEPCO views wind power as a clean energy complement to its hydropower generating capacity. Ethiopia has substantial wind power resources. Wind power potential in the East African country totals some 10,000 MW, EEPCO has estimated, which has noted that wind energy is higher in the dry season, when hydropower resources are at their lowest.

The six wind power projects announced this past week include the 300 MW Aysha Wind Farm near the Djibouti border, the 100 MW Debre Birhan Wind Farm north of Addis Ababa, the 100 MW Assela Wind Power Project southeast of the capital, and the 153 MW Adama II Wind Power Project. Also slated to start construction are the 250 MW Galema I Wind Power project 42 MW Mesebo Harena Wind Farm and the 42 MW Mesebo Harena Wind Farm.

Ethiopia’s electric utility also intends to start construction of the 70 MW Aluto Langano Geo Thermal project. Rich in geothermal resources, the East African Rift Zone runs through eastern Ethiopia, though the country has thus far been much less active in exploiting it than has neighboring Kenya, which in September announced its intention to generate 30% of its electricity needs from geothermal resources by 2030.

Adelaide Now has an update on Petratherms geothermal project at Paralana - Hot rocks leader plans third well.

PETRATHERM wants to differentiate itself from other geothermal explorers as it moves toward becoming a working electricity supplier.

Announcing an upgraded resource statement for the flagship Paralana project, Petratherm managing director Terry Kallis said yesterday the company had the right projects, partners and people to deliver results soonest.

After tests, Paralanas potential has been independently assessed, recording an inaugural "measured" resource and with almost half of the total 38,000 petajoules resource moving into the higher confidence "indicated" bracket from the "inferred" category.

The upgrade was a major step forward for Petratherm and partners Beach Energy and TRUenergy, Mr Kallis said.

"It is estimated we have enough geothermal resource potential for about 1300 megawatts of power generation for 30 years, which equates to more than one-third of South Australias power use," he said.

The SMH has a report on geothermal power project planned for Victoria - Geothermal plant wins state backing.

A GEOTHERMAL energy project near Geelong has landed a $25 million state government grant to help develop a 12-megawatt pilot power plant. Greenearth Energy, which secured the money yesterday, says its plans for the demonstration plant could power up to 8000 homes.

The grant follows two years of negotiations with both Labor and Coalition governments to secure the funds under the states Energy Technology Innovation Strategy, first promised in 2009. The first $5 million will go towards drilling a four-kilometre deep well to test the geothermal resource at one of the companys exploration sites. Greenearth holds exploration licences for Gherang, Wensleydale and Anglesea, and a preferred site will be announced in three months.

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Bubbling Up Geothermal Sees Big Global Growth

While geothermal power remains a relatively niche source of renewable energy, it is still a piece of the puzzle. EarthTechling reports that global production is set to double over the next few years - Bubbling Up: Geothermal Sees Big Global Growth.

Global geothermal power capacity could be on its way toward doubling, according to a new industry report, as projects unfold around the world, with a number of countries closing in on putting their first geothermal power stations to work.

The Geothermal Energy Association, in its 2013 Geothermal Power: International Market Overview, said seventy countries are moving forward with nearly seven hundred projects. The group said that as of August this year, 11,765 megawatts of geothermal capacity were online – and 11,776 MW of new capacity were in the early stages of development or under construction.

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Rwanda targeting 300 MW of geothermal power in next six years

Engineering News has an article on interest in geothermal power in Rwanda (the country also has some interesting power generation potential using gas from the great lakes) - Rwanda targeting 300 MW of geothermal power in next six years .

Rwanda plans to include geothermal power in its energy mix in a bid to tackle severe electricity challenges and power its fast-expanding economy. The East African nation says it has set itself a target of generating 300 MW from geothermal sources in the next six years.

Stephen Onacha, an energy expert at Rwanda’s Ministry of Infrastructure, says that the drilling of three geothermal exploration wells, at a cost of $20-million, will start this year.

The decision to invest in geothermal energy is part of a comprehensive energy diversification programme aimed at expanding Rwanda’s installed capacity to 1 000 MW in seven years, connecting more people to the grid and driving economic growth.

The programme is expected to cost a staggering $900-million, and various financers, such as the African Development Bank, the World Bank and the European Union, have already committed to assisting Rwanda in the implementation of key projects, including the upgrading of the country’s dilapidated transmission and distribution infrastructure and the construction of new generation plants.

Although Rwanda is East Africa’s fastest-growing economy, with the World Bank forecasting gross domestic product growth of 7% in 2010, the country has been facing major energy challenges.

The Rwanda Electricity Corporation says the country’s installed capacity stood at a mere 69 MW in 2009, but plans are under way to increase this capacity to 130 MW by the end of next year through investments in small hydropower plants and methane gas plants. Only 6% of the population is connected to the electricity grid.

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Scottish Geothermal Energy Potential

The BBC has a report on interest in geothermal power in Scotland - Cairngorms and Lothian hot rocks potential highlighted.

Hot rocks far below the surface of Scotland offer a means of generating limitless amounts of electricity, according to a new study.

Ed Stephens, a geologist at St Andrews University in Fife, said the Cairngorms and East Lothian have the potential for geothermal systems. He said more research would be needed on how to exploit the resource and overcome expensive drilling costs. Germany and Australia are already developing geothermal projects.

Mr Stephens study used data gathered in the 1980s. He said geothermals potential in Scotland was again topical because the Scottish government had added it to its list of renewable energy resources.
Radioactive decay

Hard granites in the eastern Cairngorms and running towards Aberdeen offered some of the best sources of hot rocks, Mr Stephens said. The origin of the heat is the radioactive decay of uranium, thorium and potassium contained within the rock.

Mr Stephens said this heat accumulated slowly over geological time and granites deep in the Earths crust have become repositories of "effectively limitless supplies of thermal energy". Electricity could be generated by pumping water down bore holes to create steam to drive power plants.

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Geothermal power heats up with newfound certainty

The Age reports the new carbon tax has increased interest in geothermal power companies - Geothermal power heats up with newfound certainty.

SCIENTISTS estimate there is enough energy stored in hot rocks beneath Australias surface to meet its power demands millions of times over, but bold prognostications have not been enough for the geothermal industry.

Kevin Rudds abandonment of Labors first proposed emissions trading scheme hit the industry hard, with share prices plummeting and investors baulking. "That policy backflip has hurt the industry, no doubt," says Terry Kallis, managing director of South Australian company geothermal Petratherm. Hot rocks power remains a highly speculative industry, but things are slowly looking up for Petratherm.

Last month, it began fracturing rock four kilometres beneath the Earths surface in the North Flinders Ranges using part of a $7 million federal government drilling grant — the key step in proving a geothermal reservoir can be created deep underground and the project has a future. Mr Kallis said he believes his is the only company with an active hot rocks project.
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Yesterday Petrotherms shares leapt 16 per cent, reaching a high of 23.5¢ before closing at 19¢. It is a far cry from its high of 92¢, but is an important reflection of the role the carbon price package — and a new $10 billion clean energy finance corporation, largely paid for with carbon tax revenue — could play in developing the industry.

"It has put us back on track, which is very important," Mr Kallis says.

"Every geothermal project will take a bit longer and cost a bit more because of the policy backflips that we have had, and we all rely on the equity market, which was hit with the financial crisis. [But] having a carbon price out there starts to create an investor framework and gives the industry some certainty — something we havent had."

Changes in government policy is not the only thing that has held up geothermal investment. Projects take a long time to get off the ground and the costs are considerable with no guarantee of success.

Petratherms project involves injecting water into rocks deep beneath the ground at high pressure in an attempt to create fractures. If successful, power will ultimately be generated by steam and hot water rising from a well and running a generator at the surface.

Petratherm has no short-term need for the new funding — it hopes to access an existing $63 million demonstration stage grant later this year. But Mr Kallis says the seed funding available from the corporation could prove valuable for the industry if well run.

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Vanuatu in line for geothermal power station

Radio NZ has a report on a geothermal power project in Vanuatu - Vanuatu in line for geothermal power station.

An Australian company is planning a geothermal power plant on north Efate in Vanuatu. The company plans to set up the plant around the hot pools of Takara village. It aims to provide cheap electricity for Efate by early 2014.

The company says it’ll spend as much as nine billion vatu, or around 99 million US dollars on the project.

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A Geothermal power plant for Malaysia

The Star reports that a geothermal power plant is to be built in Malaysia - Geothermal power plant soon.

The countrys first environmental-friendly geother- mal power generation plant will begin operating in Tawau in three years.

The 30mW plant costing some RM400mil would be built and operated by Sabah-based Tawau Green Energy Sdn Bhd (TGE) with the electricity being channelled to the Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) power grid.

State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun witnessed the signing of a 21-year renewable energy power purchase agreement between TGE and SESB yesterday.

TGE project director Andrew Amaladoss said the geothermal plant would be built on a 20ha site about 20km from Tawau town and adjacent to the Tawau Hills Park.

Amaladoss said TGE would tap geothermal energy by drilling 12 wells to a depth of between 1.8km and 2km.

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