On July 22, 2013, the Canadian Geothermal Energy Association (CanGEA) released the “Geothermal Technology Roadmap: Global Best Practices Summary – Exploration through Generation”. The report outlines aspects of geothermal energy development, including: exploration, reservoir modeling, drilling, stimulation and completions, power conversion and the direct use of heat.
The report is available for download via our Reports page. The “Geothermal Technology Roadmap: Global Best Practices Summary – Exploration through Generation” reviews what other leading nations and agencies have already published and thus informs our target audience, geothermal developers and investors, of the state-of–the-art technologies and techniques in the industry and enables them to consider applications to their own projects. For technology providers, this report will inform research and business plans by discovering what priority areas of research still remain unsolved and by identifying step-out applications for the markets they currently serve. Further, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are of special importance when considering the audience, as these organizations most often lack the internal resources to accumulate the type of information presented in this Geothermal Best Practices Summary in a comprehensive manner. The “Geothermal Technology Roadmap: Global Best Practices Summary – Exploration through Generation” is part of a larger initiative, known as the Canadian Geothermal Technology Roadmap & Implementation Plan (TRM&IP), that intends to identify, address and remove roadblocks to the development of the geothermal energy industry in Canada. The Canadian Geothermal TRM&IP body of work is supported financially by Natural Resources Canada (CanMET Energy). The report was developed with generous support from The National Research Council (Industrial Research Assistance Program). The primary author of the report was Tim Thompson of Borealis GeoPower Inc., and the principal technical peer review was conducted by Dr. Graeme Beardsmore of Hot Dry Rocks Pty Ltd (Australia). CanGEA has updated their Canadian Geothermal Supply Chain and Canadian Geothermal Sector Profile reports. Both reports can be found and downloaded on the Reports page of the CanGEA website.
As the first instalment of the Canadian National Geothermal Database (CNGD), the results of the Alberta Geothermal Favourability Maps & Database project have been released and are available via the CanGEA website.
See the AB Favourability Map & Database page for the Alberta results, and the CNGD tab of the website for general information on the national project. Along with the CBC news report about BC’s geothermal potential, the CBC also broadcasted a news segment about the lack of development of geothermal energy in Canada. Included in the piece was a segment of the on-air interview done with Alison Thompson, the Chair of CanGEA.
To view the broadcast, please click here. CBC News’s Reality Check recently reported on British Columbia’s immense geothermal potential and the surprising lack of development. The report included interviews with Green Party Leader Jane Sterk, the GSC’s Stephen Grasby and CanGEA’s very own Chair, Alison Thompson.
To view the original news article, please click here. CanGEA would like to congratulate DEEP Earth Energy Production Corp. (DEEP) on their recent announcement that Natural Resources Canada and SaskPower intend to contribute a total of $2.2 million to fund a Front End Engineering Design (FEED) Study on the economic and technical viability of geothermal as a source of clean electricity generation in southeastern Saskatchewan.Natural Resources Canada will contribute approximately $1.0 million through its ecoEII program and SaskPower, subject to the successful completion of a funding agreement with DEEP, is considering a contribution up to $1.2 million to the FEED study’s review of technical data, reservoir tests, and development of detailed costs for the next phases of the project.
“Through the ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative, our Government is investing in innovative clean energy technologies that create jobs, generate new economic opportunities and protect the environment,” said the Honourable Joe Oliver, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources. “This program demonstrates our tangible support for energy projects that drive energy innovation.” Upon successful conclusion of the FEED study, it is DEEP’s intention to pursue a five megawatt (MW) binary geothermal power plant that would be located near Estevan, Saskatchewan, that would generate power from a hot aquifer located 3 kilometres under the surface. Five megawatts is roughly the power required by 5,000 homes, and DEEP’s proposed plant would offset 40,000 metric tonnes of CO2 per year, equivalent to the emissions from 8,016 cars. It is DEEP’s hope that if the FEED study proves successful, this would create the opportunity to develop multiple geothermal plants over the next decade. “This first project could launch a brand new sustainable power supply industry for Canada. The United States is the number one geothermal power producer in the world, and geothermal opportunities do not end at the border,” said Kirsten Marcia, President and CEO of DEEP. Binary geothermal power plants utilizing the Organic Rankine Cycle have become the preferred means of exploiting hot sedimentary aquifers; more than 800 MW of these plants are in operation today. DEEP’s project will closely resemble these existing power plants. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: DEEP: Public Relations & Media, Cynthia Block: (306) 230-8262, cynthia@blockcommunications.ca President and CEO, Kirsten Marcia: (306) 261-6979, kmarcia@deepcorp.ca SASKPOWER: Media Relations, Regina, Tyler Hopson: (306) 536-2886, thopson@saskpower.com CanGEA would like to congratulate Geodynamics Ltd., an Australian geothermal exploration and development company, as they have recently announced that their 1MWe Habanero Pilot Plant has been commissioned and begun power production. The plant, located in southern Australia, signifies Australia’s first Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) generated power. The plant is scheduled to run for ~100 days during which a trial and testing program will assess the plant, well and resource capabilities. Completion is scheduled to occur in August 2013. Following this, the data will be used to produce a feasibility study and a field development plan through which a customer will be secured and an initial small-scale project pursued.
Managing Director and CEO, Mr Geoff Ward, said “The generation of power at our 1MWe Pilot Plant is a major milestone for Geodynamics, geothermal power in Australia and EGS technology globally. The commencement of the demonstration trial is the culmination of many years of hard work and the application of rigorous engineering and field operations. I congratulate all the team involved in delivering this milestone. The Habanero EGS Project is a globally significant demonstration of EGS geothermal capability. I would like to acknowledge the support of the Australian Government through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s provision of the Renewable Energy Demonstration Program grant funding. This has been critical to allowing Geodynamics to achieve this milestone and demonstrate world leading capability in this area of geothermal technology. We look forward to successfully completing the planned testing program.” The production of EGS power at the Habanero plant marks a victory for geothermal and is a major milestone for Geodynamics and Australia, as well as globally. EGS poses a big challenge because instead of relying on naturally occurring permeable pockets of steam and water, as traditional geothermal development does, EGS can be done in places where there may not be any, or there is not enough, permeability or water/steam. EGS replicates these conditions by fracturing the rock and creating the necessary permeability, and/or circulating injected water through the system. Once circulated through the system and heated up, the water is pumped to surface and used to produce electricity in a conventional turbine, after which it is re-injected back into the subsurface system where it once again heats up and begins the cycle once more, participating in a constant loop. The most significant advantage for EGS over conventional geothermal is that it is not limited to specific locations, but rather can be done virtually anywhere; heat exists below the surface no matter where you are on Earth, it just depends on how far you have to drill to reach it. For more information on EGS development and technology, visit the Geothermal Technologies Office’s EGS page. For more information on Geodynamics Ltd. and their ongoing projects, visit the Geodynamics web page. CanGEA has released the “Canadian Geothermal Projects Overview 2013″. This Annual Report is a showcase of geothermal projects in Canada, both for power generation and the direct use of heat. The report also features an overview on the geothermal resources in Canada and an overview on the most prominent geothermal hot springs in Western Canada. The report can be downloaded here. The event will be held in Calgary, AB from March 20-22, 2013.
Please see the 2013 CanGEA Geothermal Conference page for more details on the event and to register. |
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