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Mar 17, 2010Borealis Partners with Free Energy on Co-Production Project
Congratulations to CanGEA member Borealis GeoPower and Free Energy International Inc., for receiving up to $2,600,000 from the Alberta Energy Research Institute (AERI), Clean Air and Climate Change: Technology and Innovation Initiative to assist in funding the Company’s power production plant at the Swan Hills oil and gas production facility in Alberta. The power production plant will use geothermal waste heat from the facility to generate electricity to be used as an alternative or supplementary source of electricity at the facility. This facility is expected to produce the first geothermal MW in Canada.
From Borealis GeoPower:
Borealis Geopower has partnered with Free Energy Power Corporation to develop the Swan Hills power production plant using geothermal waste heat.
This innovative project has been approved for a grant of up to $2,600,000 provided by the Alberta Energy Research Institute to assist in funding the Company’s power production plant at the Swan Hills oil and gas production facility in Alberta. Funding under the grant is subject to a number of conditions including a matching on a dollar for dollar basis of eligible expenditures. The power production plant will use geothermal waste heat from the facility to generate electricity to be used as an alternative or supplementary source of electricity at the facility. The main part of the Swan Hills field produces oil, gas and water from a depth of approximately 9000 feet. These fluids are pumped to the surface at approximately 163 - 170 degrees F. in very high volumes. The oil and gas are separated from the water, and the water is then pumped back into the formation. Free Energy will utilize heat exchange technology to remove sufficient heat from the water before it is re-circulated to produce electricity.
This project is certainly a win for the environment as the energy produced is extracted from what is otherwise “waste heat” from water that is recycled back into the earth. There are no pollutants or green house gases produced to create this “heat from nature”. Based upon a successful demonstration of this technology at Swan Hills, the opportunity to create “in situ” power from “waste heat” will transform the ability of all Oil and Gas producers to create “green energy” from this previously untapped natural source.
Borealis entered into an agreement with Free Energy Power Corp (FEPC), a subsidary of Free Energy International inc, on December 21, 2009. In conjunction with the agreement, FEPC has agreed to pay Borealis a royalty based upon the net distributable cash paid by FEPC to Free Energy International Inc. Borealis will also be retained to prepare a technical report on the geothermal qualities and projected longevity of oil production from the Project Lands, and will be entitled to share in the proceeds from any sale of the project by FEPC, to a maximum of $1,000,000.Borealis and Free Energy are very pleased with the approval of the grant application, as it positions the two companies to continue developing extensive geothermal assets, and to deliver “clean renewable energy”. Additional debt or equity financing is necessary to complete funding of the project.
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