IGA NEWS
Newsletter of the International Geothermal Association
Quarterly No. 110

IGA ACTIVITIES
Message from the Executive
Director
Greetings to all members of IGA and those that arereading this newsletter, we wish you all a healthy, happy
and prosperous 2018.
It is my pleasure to start the new year in full speed
regarding transitioning the IGA into an independent,
financially stable organisation that unites the geothermal
voice, connects the geothermal community and provides
an excellent platform for all our affiliates, members andcorporate entities to network, share best practices andto influence the Geothermal Agenda for the coming
decade.
I am grateful for the trust given to me to execute thestrategy the Board has successfully put together early in2017. We are well underway regarding some strategic
themes such as our Visibility and our Authority. In 2018
we will focus on our membership model and of course
on our Financial Independence. Some big topics werediscussed at Board meeting #67 in Santiago, Chile,
amongst others the continuation of the IGA Academy
and strategic initiatives regarding shaping our value
proposition to future corporate sponsors. Great news toshare with you is that we are progressing with theorganisation of the next World Geothermal Congress
which will be held in 2020 in Reykjavik, Iceland.
This month I will be focusing on our workprogramme
for the coming year in line with the approved budget.
The next Board meeting will be in Iceland, in April
2018, adjacent to the Iceland Geothermal Congress of
24-26 April.
I am very proud to have our President Alexander
Richter speak at the IRENA National Assembly event
in Abu Dhabi on 13-14 January (see photo in the nextpage), in which we were given the opportunity to engage
with the public on Accelerating Geothermal
Development. IRENA’s Global Geothermal Allianceoffers a great platform for the IGA to grow our
network and be a visible partner to policy makers andinfluence the political agenda for the coming decade.
At the IGA Secretariat we have a fantastic team in placeand I want to thank Karolina Andersson, Gregor
Rumberg, Margaret Krieger and Julieta Schroer for all
their hard work, commitment and enthusiasm forwww.geothermal-energy.org

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CONTENTS
IGA ACTIVITIES
Message from the Executive Director... 1
67th BoD Meeting in Santiago, Chile… 2
IGA Open Letter to Bill Gates… 3
The U.S. GRC and GEA to Be Merged… 5
Thanks to Susan… 5

AFRICA
Djibouti: Geothermal Activities Being Reassumed… 6
Ethiopia: Corbetti and Tulu Moye Projects… 6
Kenya: Generation, Projects, Diversification… 7
South Africa: Geothermal Areas of Interest… 9

AMERICAS
Canada: Alterra, PPA & Royal Consent… 10
Caribbean: Nevis, Risk Mitigation Program… 11
Chile: Power Auction, Storage in Cerro Pabellón… 12
Mexico: New Power Plant & 3rd Power Auction… 13
U.S.: Tungsten Power Plant, R&D 100 Awards… 14

ASIA / PACIFIC RIM
China: Sinopec Exploration, Geothermal Alliance… 15
Indonesia: Pilot Plant, Potential, Financial Subjects… 16
Philippines: Maibarara, Draft Rules for Renewables… 18
S. Korea: Investigation on Geothermal & Seism… 19
Taiwan: Nuclear Plants, Mt. Datun, New FiTs… 19
Vietnam: Minister for Geothermal Research… 20

EUROPEEGEC Supports RE Report… 21
Belgium: CHP Plant Starts Construction in Balmat… 21
Denmark: Guarantee for Geothermal Projects… 22
Finland: Deep Drilling at Espoo… 23
Greece: MOU for Geothermal in Santorini… 23
Iceland: Theistareykir & Hellisheidi… 24
Italy: Algae Greenhouse Heated by Geothermal… 25
Portugal: 4MW Plant Starts Operation in Terceira… 26
The Netherlands: Green Light for the HAL Project... 26
Turkey: Kuyucak, Installed Capacity, Direct Uses… 27

OCEANIA
Australia: Towns will Use Geothermal Energy… 29
New Zealand: Drilling for Ngawha Expansion … 30

OTHER
Climate Change… 30
Financing: Lazard Analysis of LCOEs… 34
Science… 35
Technology… 38
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

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making the IGA a smooth, agile organisation ready toadopt new technology and features to serve all our
members to the best of our ability.

Yamada, Surya Darma, Toshihiro Uchida and Massimo
Verdoya. Additional participant was Marit Brommer,
Executive Director.

Again, Happy New Year to all, I look forward to thisexciting year.

The agenda included the following points: 1. Call toorder, 2. Approval of the Minutes of the IGA Board
Meeting No. 66, 3. Approval of the Agenda, 4. IGA
Service Company: review and outlook, 5. IGA Strategy
Update with the pillars: Visibility (launch visual identity),
Membership, Authority, Independence, 6. New Zealandand Germany legal review, 7. Bylaws, 8. Business modeland value proposition, 9. Governance, 10. Structure andSet-up of IGA, 11. Board composition & board term,
12. Engagement – councils and observers, 13.
Sustainability, 14. Income, funding, project-based value
creation,
15.
Sponsorship/membership/WGC
frequency and set-up, 16. Business Model review &outlook, 17. Annual General Meeting, 18. BoD reportsof President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Exec
Dir, Committee chairs of finance, Programme andPlanning, Bylaws, Information, Education, Nomination,
Membership, Resources and Reserves, Audit, Chairs ofBranches, 19. Approval Budget 2018, 20. IGA & IGA
Service Company: Conflicts of Interest/Code of
Conduct, 21. Presentation/proposed date and place fornext BoD Meeting. 22. Adjournment.

Kind regards,
Dr. Marit Brommer, Executive Director, IGA –marit.brommer@hs-bochum.de

67th BoD Meeting in Santiago,
ChilePeter Meier, Chair of the Information
Committee, GeoEnergie Suisse
The 67th Meeting of the IGA Board of Directors (BoD)
was held in the Centro de Excelencia en Geotermia de
Los Andes (CEGA), located in the Geology
Department of the University of Chile, in Santiago, on
November 27 and 28, 2017. The 28th Annual General
Meeting (AGM) of IGA took place on Tuesday
morning, February 28, 2017.
IGA president Alexander Richter welcomed the IGA
Board of Directors and called the 67th Board Meeting toorder at 9:00 am. The participants introduced
themselves, including the following Board members:
Albert Genter, Alexander Richter, Bjarni Bjarnason,
Bruno Della Vedova, Colin Harvey, Diego Morata,
Gábor Szita, Jane Brotheridge, Kristín Vala
Matthíasdóttir, Ludvik S. Georgsson, Paul Brophy, PaulMoya, Peter Meier, Peter Omenda, Rolf Bracke, Shigeto

The main aspects and agreements of the meeting follow.
- Colombia has been approved as a new affiliate to the
IGA, as well as a budget for the short course in
Colombia.
- The shut-down of the European Branch has been
decided because of the coexistence of several partly

Alex Richter, President of IGA, addresses at the IRENA’s Assembly in Abu Dhabi.
www.geothermal-energy.org

January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
overlapping organizations in Europe.
- The president of IGA to sign off the Agreement to
Host regarding the WGC 2020 in Iceland.
- The new design of IGA logo and website will belaunched in 2018.
- Resources and Reserves Committee: The Board
approved a budget of US$ 25,000 for the work of thefour subgroups, especially to co-fund and leverage
activities with ESMAP (World Bank) and IRENA for
applying UNFC resource qualification and classification
to up to three example countries.
- The Education committee to evaluate if the IGA
Academy shall continue.
The next BoD Meeting will take place in Iceland,
adjacent to the Iceland Geothermal Conference (ICG)
and will be 27–29 April 2018. President Alexander
Richter thanked the BoD and closed the 67th meetingon November 28 at 3:00 pm.
Most of the board members joined the field trip on
November 29 to Chile’s and South America’s firstgeothermal power plant. The 48 MW Cerro Pabellón
geothermal plant is located at an altitude of 4,500 m in
the Atacama Desert in the North of Chile. This field
trip was made possible by Enel Green Power and
ENAP (Empresa Nacional de Petróleo), who developed
the project together. We would like to extend our
gratitude to IGA Board Member Diego Morata of the
University of Chile and Guido Capetti of Enel GreenPower and former IGA President for hosting us during

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these days. A special contribution about the outstanding
Cerro Pabellón project is under preparation for the next
IGA News edition.

IGA Open Letter to Bill Gates
Dear Mr. Gates:
We wanted to thank you for your blog post ofDecember 12 on the 4 Signs of Progress on Climate Change
and your commitment on finding solutions to Climate
Change. We read this piece with great interest,
specifically on your commitment towards “especiallypromising but also underfunded” areas in clean energy
investments, including Geothermal Power.
We are extremely pleased to see this commitment
towards Geothermal Energy and agree with yourstatement that it is “a phenomenal amount of energy
stored up as heat under the Earth’s surface”. We are theInternational Geothermal Association, and theundersigned 31 people are together forming its Board of
Directors. We represent countries, companies, research
institutes, and universities. All with a passion forgeothermal energy and a dedication to see theGeothermal Industry thrive.
We love the efforts and the goal of BreakthroughEnergy Ventures and the initial investment areas offocus. We share your view that heat stored near-surface
in volcanic islands are the quick wins. We also take notethat mature techniques, notably from the Petroleum
Industry, help to unlock geothermal resources deeper inthe subsurface.
This is exactly why we areengaged and committed tobring geothermal further:
the quick wins are done.
We need to push harder,
collaborate together, andwork effectively towards
connecting
thoseunexploited
geographic
areas to their phenomenalenergy source beneath
their feet. We are keen towork with you and your
BreakthroughEnergyVentures to make thishappen.
We have the following
Vision:Participants in the IGA BoD meeting in Santiago (Photo by Marit Brommer).
www.geothermal-energy.org

o We want to help
the world economies to let
go of the fossil-fueladdictionandletgeothermal energy play its
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110oopart in replacing fossil-based heat and power
generation.
We want to turn geothermal prospects into
bankable projects by creating an attractive
investors environment.
We support policy development, based on thevalue provided by geothermal and promote
good governance of geothermal operations
worldwide.

The unique opportunities presented by geothermal
through:ooooLocal economic development: geothermal as
local source of power through distributed
development and decentralized economic
development in rural areas.
Replacing coal through deep geothermal
applications.
Cleaning up the air: replacing fossil fuels in theheating sector, improving air-quality, health andwell-being (see China).
Access to water and food: Geothermal provides
access to water and heating for greenhouses, aswell as cooling.

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Dr. Marit Brommer, Executive Director, IGA
The Board of Directors of the IGA:
Bjarni Bjarnason, Reykjavik Energy, Iceland
Andrea Blair, Women in Geothermal, New ZealandRolf Bracke, Bochum University of Applied Science,
Germany
Paul Brophy, EGS, Inc., U.S.
Jane Brotheridge, Jacobs Engineering, New ZealandLouis Capuano, Capuano Engineering, U.S.
Surya Darma, Indonesia
Bruno della Vedova, Fondazione Internazionale Trieste,
Italy
Ariel D. Fronda, Department of Energy, Philippines
Albert Genter, Électricité de Strasbourg, Strasbourg,
FranceLudvik Georgsson, UNU – Geothermal Training
Program, Reykjavik, Iceland
Colin Harvey, Harvey Consultants, New ZealandGeorgina Izquierdo,
Eléctricas, Mexico

InstitutodeInvestigaciones

Beata Kepinska. Academy of Science, Poland
Kristin Vala Matthiasdóttir, HS Orka, IcelandPeter Meier, GeoEnergie Suisse, Switzerland
Diego Morata, University of Chile, Chile
Paul Moya, West-Jec, Costa Rica
Juliette Newson, Iceland School of Energy, IcelandPeter Omenda, Consultant, Kenya
Abadi Poernomo, Indonesia Geothermal Association,
Indonesia
No other renewable energy and fossil-fuel based
technology can compete on the unique and various
attributes and opportunities offered by geothermal. We
all know the transformative impact geothermal energy
can have on communities and the planet and want toshare that with others.

Alexander Richter, ThinkGeoEnergy, Iceland

We kindly ask for the chance to meet you or the team ofBreakthrough Energy Ventures to discuss ways toidentify catalysts that can help push for increased
geothermal development around the world. Only when
we are collaborating and bundling efforts on pushinggeothermal development worldwide, will geothermalenergy be able to live up to its great potential in theimportant energy transition.

Gabor Szita, Porcio Ltd./Hungarian Geothermal
Association, Hungary

You can find the International Geothermal Association
via its website at www.lovegeothermal.org.
www.geothermal-energy.org

Horst Rüter, HarbourDom, Germany
Andrew Sabin, Geothermal Program Office, U.S.
Ka Noel Salonga, EDC, Philippines

Valentina Svalova, InstituteGeoscience RAS, Russia

ofEnvironmental

Toshi Uchirida, AIST, Japan
Massimo Verdoya, University of Genova, Italy
Shigeto Yamada, Fuji Electric, Japan
Sadiq Zarrouk, University of Auckland, New ZealandJanuary-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

The U.S.’ Geothermal
Resources Council andGeothermal Energy
Association to Be Merged
The Geothermal Resources Council (GRC) is the national
affiliated association to the IGA in the U.S. It is also the largestof the IGA’s national associations. Now, the GRC’s membershiphas voted to join the GEA into one alone organization that willkeep the GRC name in the meanwhile. Here is the official
announcement from the GRC.
The Geothermal Resources Council (GRC) and the
Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) are excited toannounce their unification. Combining the GRC and
GEA strengthens the voice of our industry with a single
organization devoted to advancing the science,education, and development of renewable geothermalenergy resources.

5
The GRC’s Policy Committee will file an annual 501 (h)election, which allows them to conduct legislative andregulatory advocacy. An additional membership fee tojoin the Policy Committee will raise the funds for theiractivities. This provides the GRC with a mechanism tokeep their primary members’ dues and funding
completely separate.
The headquarters for the unified organization will be in
Davis, California and operate under the name“Geothermal Resources Council” until further
discussion of a possible name change is completed.
Source:https://geothermal.org/PDFs/News_Releases/2018/Ja
nuary_8-GRC_and_GEA_Announce_Unification.pdf

Thanks to Susan
Luis C.A. Gutiérrez-Negrín, Editor
During the last 16
issues Susan Fox
Hodgson has been thepatient and constant
proofreader of our
newsletter(IGANews). That meantfour years of short but
intense periods ofwork, almost always
againstaclose
deadline, battling totransform our more orless rough and quite
often technical jargon,
in
a
more
comprehensible, clear
and even refined

Members of both organizations voted on the decision to
unify and the results were overwhelmingly in favor.
They will benefit from an increased value for their dues
and improved networking relationships as thegeothermal community moves forward together.
The activities of the GEA will be transitioned into the
GRC in early 2018. One of the key activities is alreadyunderway through the establishment of a special
committee, the GRC Policy Committee. This committee
will focus on educating and lobbying leaders at state andfederal levels to expand their knowledge about thegeothermal industry. The committee will also assist thegeothermal community in its awareness of opportunities
to expand renewable energy projects, building a stronger
platform for the entire U.S. energy grid. All members
are encouraged to join in this new effort.
“Together, the now unified GRC and GEA can advancethe geothermal community in more ways to connect
with the larger energy industry and create a clean
environment for future generations to enjoy,” stated
Maria Richards, President of the GRC Board of
Directors.
Doug Glaspey, President of the Board of Directors for
the GEA said, “The members of GEA look forward toworking within a single organization to advocate for andadvance sound geothermal law and policy that will
expand our industry. The unification of our twoorganizations will allow us to pursue this mission in themost efficient manner possible.”
The GRC will continue as a non‐profit, 501(c)3
corporation serving as the professional educational
association for the international geothermal community,
as a focal point for continuing professional
development through outreach, information transfer
and education services.
www.geothermal-energy.org

English text.
Retired years ago from the California Department ofConservation, Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal
Resources (DOGGR), Susan is a passionate geothermal
historian who for quite some time contributes technicalarticles and news to the bimonthly Geothermal
Resources Council (GRC) Bulletin. She also has
published several books. Perhaps the best known is
Stories from a Heated Earth: Our Geothermal Heritage, coedited by Raffaele Cataldi and John W. Lund, andpublished by GRC and IGA in 1999.
Recently, Susan has asked us to end her IGA News
proofreading effort, which we will miss enormously, inorder to spend more time on other projects, though she
promised to continue collaborating with eventual notes
and watercolors; Susan is also a talented painter, as you
can attest on page 29 of the IGA News Special Number(Sept. 2016), and on page 9 IGA News No. 106. As theJanuary-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
editor of the newsletter, I would like to express mypersonal gratitude to Susan, but also theacknowledgement of the Information Committee, of
which Susan is a member.

AFRICA
Djibouti: Geothermal
Activities Being Reassumed
The Djibouti Geothermal Energy Development
Authority (Oddeg) was founded to push geothermal
development. The organization is led by Dr. Kayad
Moussa Ahmed, Director General of Oddeg. The goalof the entity is to “Provide the first megawatt to the gridin 2020,” he says.
Located on the northern tip of the African Rift,
Djibouti would produce “5,000 MW on the twenty sites
now listed in the territory,” says the specialist, whorecalls that “the current national energy capacity is 120
MW”.
A long time has passed between the first attempts of the
Bureau of Geological and Mining Research (BRGM),
carried out in 1972, and the promises of the Assal-Fiale
project today. French, Italian, American, Icelandic,
Turkish and Japanese alongside the Djiboutians havebeen on multiple trips back and forth between the twosalt lakes of the country, Assal and Abbot, before
settling not far from the Goubet at Assal-Fiale.
In 1999 Ismail Omar Guelleh arrived to the power andin 2007 he created a team of specialists that met six
years later at Oddeg.

6
While the French drilled up to a depth of 1,000 meters
at Lake Assal, local engineers merely drilled between
300 and 600 m and fell on an intermediate geothermal
reservoir, with temperature of 140°C, “which gives hopefor finding an exploitable resource,” explains Moussa
Ahmed. The project has just received US$ 27 million
from the Kuwait Fund for Development (FKD) and
expects an identical amount from the Arab Fund for
Economic and Social Development (Fades) to start
drilling production and build a 15 MW geothermal plantby 2021.
For the new drilling campaign, Oddeg will be able tocount on a new 125 ton drilling rig, delivered by Turkey.
The company will launch an eight-hole drill programthat together could produce between 10 and 15 MW.
“With a potential of 100 MW, to be confirmed,” says its
director general.
This is not the only project ongoing in Djibouti. The
most advanced today is that of Assal-Fiale, initiallystarted in 2007 with Icelandic participation. The projectcontinued in 2012, with financial support from donors,
American expertise and Icelandic material. The start ofproduction is expected for 2018, on an identified
reservoir of 50 to 100 MW.
A third drilling program is also scheduled to start at the
Hanle-Garabayis site, near Lake Abbot in 2019, thistime with the help of Japan, which pays for 80% of thecosts. A prospecting program launched on Emirati
funds is finally start in the Arta region.
Source: http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/geothermaldevelopment-in-djibouti-full-steam-ahead/

Ethiopia: EEP Signs Contract
Agreements on Corbetti and
Tulu Moye Projects
On December 2017, Corbetti Geothermal plc, theGovernment of the Federal Democratic Republic ofEthiopia and Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) signed an
implementation agreement (IA) and a power purchaseagreement (PPA) for the construction of geothermal
power plants in Corbetti and Tulu Moye localities, in theOromia Regional State.
The contract agreement with Corbetti Geothermal is
aimed to develop up to 500 MW in Corbetti locality,
East Arsi zone, near Shashemene town. The total costof the project is estimated at two billion dollars. The
project implementation agreement was supposed to besigned in August 2016 but delayed due to various
reasons.
Reykjavik Geothermal (RG), an Icelandic company
specialized in geothermal energy development projects,
signed a framework agreement with the then Ethiopian

www.geothermal-energy.org

January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
Electric Power Corporation in October 2013 thatenables it to develop 1000 MW of electricity fromgeothermal energy sources in Corbetti, Tulu Moye andAbaya localities in East Arsi Zone. Reykjavik
Geothermal with its local partner Rift Valley
Geothermal established Corbetti Geothermal Plc andbrought along two major investors – Berkley Energy
and Iceland Drilling –who have shown a keen interest toinvest on the geothermal development project.
RG split the 1000 MW geothermal development project
into two phases – the 500MW Corbetti project and the500MW Tulu Moye and Abaya project – each costing
two billion dollars. Corbetti Geothermal Plc, a special
purpose vehicle company established by RG in
Ethiopia, has been working on the Corbetti geothermal
development project located 270 km southeast of Addis
Ababa in East Arsi Zone. RG owns a 28.5 percent stakeon Corbetti Geothermal Plc, Berkley Energy 53.5
percent and Iceland Drilling 18 percent. Corbetti
Geothermal secured funding from major international
financiers, including African Development Bank andEuropean Investment Bank. Many other public andprivate investors from the US, the UK and other
European countries are behind the Corbetti geothermal
project. The project is also backed by the US Power
Africa Initiative.
After a long negotiation Corbetti Geothermal and theEEP signed a conditional power purchasing agreementin July 2015 during former U.S. president Barack
Obama visit to Addis Ababa. The company agreed tobuild the geothermal power plant and sell electric powerfor US$ 7.53 cents per KWh for the national grid.
EEP also signed the second agreement for Tulu Moye
geothermal power plant project with RG. Once ratified
by parliament, the agreements will enable Corbetti tocommence drilling the first production wells in 2018. It
also lays the foundations for subsequent geothermal
projects.
Sources:
http://www.thereporterethiopia.com/article/power-cosign-agreements-corbetti-tulu-moye-geothermalprojects, http://www.rg.is/en/frettir/the-governmentof-ethiopia-and-ethiopian-electric-power-sign-keyagreements-with-corbetti-geothermal-plc

Kenya: Geothermal-Electric
Generation, New Project,
KenGen Diversification
Geothermal Energy Provides 50% of Electricity
Generation - During the third quarter of 2017,
geothermal production increased its share in the energy
mix in Kenya to about 50 percent, while hydro stands at
39 percent from a low of 21 percent. Thermal energy
has declined to 15 from 32 percent during the first six
www.geothermal-energy.org

7

UPCOMING EVENTS
43rd Annual Stanford Geothermal Workshop
12-14 February 2018, Stanford, CA, U.S.
GeoTHERM – Expo & Congress
1-2 March 2018, Offenburg, Germany
3rd International Geothermal Congress &Exhibition
14-15 March 2018, Ankara, Turkey
25th Annual Congress of the Mexican
Geothermal Association
18-20 April 2018, Morelia, Mich., Mexico
Iceland Geothermal Conference 201824-26 April 2018, Reykjavik, IcelandGrand Renewable Energy 201817-22 June 2018, Yokoyama, JapanGEOHEAT International Geothermal
Conference
4-7 September 2018, PetropavlovskKamchatsky, Russian Federation
GRC Annual Meeting & Expo
14-17 October 2018, Reno, Nevada, U.S.
Seventh African Rift Geothermal Conference(ARGeo-C7)
29 October – 4 November 2018, Kigali,
RwandaNote: Please check the IGA website for more
events.
months of the year. Wind power, on the other hand,contributes only 0.4 percent, according to the Energy
ministry.
The geothermal surge happened as the country stepped
down production from thermal sources, which had risenin the past months due to erratic rainfall. The dry spell
had forced the country to cut down power production
from hydro sources to a low of 180 million KWh permonth and compensate the drop with thermal power,
whose generation had peaked at 274.3 million KWh.
The situation led to rise in power tariffs in the East
African nation especially in the first half of 2017, withfamilies that consumed 200 kWh in August paying up to
US$39 while those that consumed 50 kWh paid US$6.4.
Geothermal power production has been on the rise
since June, according to the Kenya National Bureau ofJanuary-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

8

Statistics (KNBS) data. Geothermal power plants
produced 415 GWh in August, the highest ever, in asustained rise from 401 GWh in July and 376 million
GWh in June. Similarly, hydropower generation was on
the increase in the period surging to 251 GWh in
August, from 193 million GWh in July and 180 GWh in
June.
With the rise in production of both hydro andgeothermal power, the bad times for consumers seem tobe coming to an end as tariffs start to fall. In September,houses that consumed 200 KWh paid US$36 downfrom US$39 dollars in the previous month, according to
the KNBS. On the other hand, those that used 50 KWh
paid US$5.8 dollars down from US$6.4 in August.
The fall in power tariffs contributed to the overall
decline in the inflation during the month. “The housing,water, electricity, gas and other fuels’ index decreased by
0.16 per cent. This was mainly due to notable decreasein the cost of electricity which outweighed observed
marginal increases in the cost of house rents andcooking fuels,” noted KNBS.
Another consequence of the increase in geothermal
generation, is that the region’s biggest economy has notexperienced any blackouts or power shortages for over a
year.
Source: https://www.newsghana.com.gh/power-tariffsfall-in-kenya-as-geothermal-production-peaks/

New Project to Start in Turkana - Olsuswa Energy
has received a grant totaling US$980,000 from theAfrican Union Commission (AUC), towards thedevelopment of its Turkana geothermal power plant.
Manga Mugwe, the Olsuswa Energy director and thechairman of Mayfox Mining—currently prospecting forgold and other precious metals in Turkana—, said thefunds will go towards co-funding the development of
the 140MW geothermal project.
Olsuswa Energy is seeking to construct a power plantover five to eight years for transmission into thenational grid. The total cost of the project stands at
US$420 million. AUC, through its Department ofInfrastructure and Energy, and Olsuswa Energy signed
the grant contract for financial support in earlyNovember 2017. The company had earlier said the firstphase of 70MW would start operating in 2022.
The funds will be used to conduct a surface study andinfrastructure upgrade program at the Barrier volcanic
complex located in Turkana County. The geothermal
field is one of the prospects in the Rift Valley and issituated south of the lake. The area covers 136 square
kilometers.
The project’s capital is expected to be in the form ofdebt from development banks and other institutions,according to Olsuswa Energy. It was not clear whether
the project has resolved permit issues with the TurkanaCounty government. A Turkana County official had
accused Olsuswa Energy of seeking to exploit
geothermal resources without signing a memorandumof understanding with the county government, whichstalled the project.
Source:http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/markets/news/Ka
nu-era-tycoon-secures-cash-for-Turkana-energy-unit/

Lakes andvolcanoes in the
Kenya’s Rift
Valley (Graph by
Uwe Dedering,
modified by
Aymatth2 https://commons.
wikimedia.org/w/
index.php?curid=
17846522)
www.geothermal-energy.org

KenGen to Diversify its Business Offer - The Kenya
Electricity Generation Company (KenGen) isdiversifying its business to selling geothermal steam andcommercial drilling services apart from its core businessof electricity generation. The company plans to set up a
subsidiary that will oversee its non-core activities thatare proving to be critical revenue streams. The
subsidiary will also offer consultancy services for players
in geothermal, mining as well as oil in Kenya and theregion.
KenGen says the subsidiary, named KenGen Energy
Services (KES), will handle diversified businesssegments that will be hived off from KenGen, leaving
the mother company to handle power production andsales.
KenGen has in the recent past diversified its revenue
streams to include the sale of geothermal steam toflower firms in Naivasha, drilling geothermal wells for
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
other firms, running its geothermal spa in Olkaria and aplanned industrial park. It is also offering energy
consultancy services to power sector players in the
country and the region.
The cost of generation is pushing the company todiversify into other potentially new revenue streams.
KenGen chairman Joshua Choge says the company issetting up a fully owned subsidiary to undertake
commercial ventures such as sale of steam which could
be used in homes or green house farming.
Chief Executive Rebecca Miano said the subsidiarywould also explore other revenue streams as the firmlooks to grow revenues while reducing reliance onenergy generation. She said the initiative was also aimed
at enabling KenGen to focus on its energy generation
business, which would remain its core business.
The new firm, Miano said, would have its own
management team. “There is a proposal to have its own
structure but with oversight from KenGen. It will havea lean structure.” Diversification is expected to enable
the firm to grow revenues and shareholder returns at atime when there is an increased number of power
producers coming into the Kenyan market and who are
expected to start feeding electricity to the national gridin the next few years.
KenGen currently accounts for more than 75% of thecountry’s total installed capacity as a result of intense
energy generation projects, notably geothermal, whose
total installed capacity is 533.8MW. The company seeks
to generate at least 2,500MW of geothermal power by
2025.

9“The results of this study suggest that despite
geothermal resources not being part of SA’s renewableenergy mix, the country does have some potential forharnessing low-enthalpy geothermal energy. We
therefore recommend that South Africa seriously
considers geothermal energy as another renewable
option,” Dhansay says.
But tapping heat from the Earth could imply serious
catches. Quite apart from high costs of exploration anddevelopment, Dhansay and his colleagues acknowledge
that there could be negative environmental effects —including pollution of scarce groundwater, subsiding
land and an increased risk of mini-earthquakes.
In the latest South African study, Dhansay and hiscolleagues note that local rocks associated with highheat flow signatures often contain high concentrationsof radiogenic elements such as uranium and potassium.
In fact, it is these rocks, which are rich in heatproducing elements, which release heat during the decayof radiogenic elements. Nevertheless, the study has
identified five regions that could be considered
promising areas for geothermal energy projects.
They include parts of the Cape mountains north-east ofCape Town (1); the Southern Karoo region from
Oudtshoorn to Cradock (2); a large belt of land north of
Durban (3); the Thabazimbi-Murchison belt north ofJohannesburg (4) and the northern Limpopo region
near Musina (5; see figure below).

Sources: http://www.kbc.co.ke/business/kengendiversifying-to-selling-steam-and-drilling-services/,
https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/article/200
1261581/kengen-eyes-more-revenues-with-newsubsidiary

South Africa: Geothermal
Areas of Interest
Local geologist Taufeeq Dhansay and a group of five
fellow scientists from the Council of Geoscience andNelson Mandela University believe that the government
is overlooking significant volumes of buried Earth heat,
which could be tapped to generate renewable energy.
Writing in the latest volume of the South African
Journal of Science, Dhansay notes that the country does
not have active volcanoes or evidence of recent volcanic
activity. Yet he believes a recent heat-mapping study
suggests there is still enough heat and warmth beneaththe land that could be used to generate steam andelectricity, making use of recent technological advancesin the field of low-enthalpy geothermal energy
harvesting.
www.geothermal-energy.org

Most interesting geothermal areas in South Africa,
according to Dhansay et al.
“South Africa may therefore have a realistic chance ofdeveloping geothermal energy, but will still needadditional research and development including new
temperature
measurements
andstructural,hydrogeological and economic investigations,” Dhansay
concluded.
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
Source:https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/scienceand-environment/2017-12-05-scientists-urge-the-useof-geothermal-energy/

AMERICAS
Canada: Company to Be Sold,
Geothermal PPA in
Saskatchewan, Royal Consent
Alterra Power to Be Sold - Alterra Power Corp.
(formerly Magma Energy) is going to be acquired by
Innergex Renewable Energy Inc, a Canada-based
renewable power producer. This company is a
developer, owner and operator of renewable powergenerating facilities with a focus on hydroelectric, wind
power and solar photovoltaic projects.
Innergex and Alterra entered into an arrangementagreement pursuant to which Innergex will acquire all of
the issued and outstanding common shares of Alterra
for an aggregate sum of around US$850 million,
including the assumption of Alterra’s debt. Alterra
Power owns 53.9% of HS Orka, a geothermal powercompany in Iceland, which in turn owns 30% of theflagship spa center Blue Lagoon (see IGA News 109,
pp. 32-33), as well as a majority share of the Reykjanes(54MW) and the Svarstsengi (49MW) power plants.

SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL ENDORSED BY THE
IGA

10
Pursuant to the transaction, Alterra shareholders will
receive an aggregate consideration consisting ofapproximately 25% in cash and 75% in common sharesof Innergex. Innergex will pay a premium of 58% toAlterra’s 20-day volume weighted average price as of
October 27, 2017. The Innergex Common Sharesissuable to Alterra shareholders in connection with thetransaction represent a pro forma ownership ofapproximately 19% of the combined company. One
member of the current Board of Directors of Alterra
will join the Board of Directors of Innergex uponclosing of the Transaction.
“This is an excellent transaction for Alterra
shareholders,” said Ross Beaty, Executive Chairman of
Alterra. “It offers a significant premium and theopportunity for Alterra shareholders to remain exposed
to Alterra’s assets, including our growth pipeline.
Innergex is an outstanding Canadian clean energy
company with highly complementary renewable energy
assets to those of Alterra and a similar corporate culture.
The combined company will have a lower cost ofcapital, stronger balance sheet, more diversified asset
base and greater capacity to grow rapidly and efficiently.
I look forward to tendering my Alterra shares into
Innergex and remaining a significant shareholder for
many years to come.”
Alterra will complement Innergex’s current operating,under construction and prospective projects, resulting inincreased geographic and technological diversification
through meaningful presence in the United States andIcelandic power markets as well as the addition ofgeothermal power generation to Innergex’s production
mix. Innergex’s overall net power generation capacity
will be of 1,606 MW, up over 40 %.
The Transaction is subject to approval of at least 66%
Alterra Common Shares at a special meeting of Alterra
shareholders to be called to consider the transaction.
The Board of Directors of Alterra has unanimously
approved the transaction and recommends that Alterra
shareholders vote in favor of the Transaction. In
addition to Alterra shareholders approval, theTransaction is subject to court and certain regulatory
approvals in Canada and U.S., key third party consents
and other customary closing conditions. Subject to thereceipt of all required regulatory approvals and key
third-party consents, closing of the Transaction is
expected to occur in the first quarter of 2018.
Source: http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/alterrapower-corp-being-acquired-in-a-deal-valued-at-1billion/

TAKE A LOOK HERE.

SaskPower Explores Geothermal Power – It was
unveiled that the Canadian utility SaskPower signed a
power purchase agreement (PPA) with geothermal
developer Deep Earth Energy Production (DEEP)www.geothermal-energy.org

January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
Corp. since May 2017, as part of its plan to double
renewable electricity generation by 2030.
“If projections hold true, we’re going to need to findover 2,000 megawatts of renewable power,” Kirsten
Marcia, president and CEO of DEEP, said.
“Geothermal is not the only solution here, but we hopeto have a very significant place at the table.”With the PPA signed with SaskPower, DEEP hopes tobuild a five megawatt, zero
emission power plant near
Estevan, where subterraneanwater is the warmest in the
Saskatchewan Province.

11

Caribbean: Exploration Well in
Nevis, Geothermal Risk
Mitigation ProgramFirst Exploration Started in Nevis - On November
22, 2017, started the drilling of an exploration well in
Nevis, which was expected to be completed in just 45
days, according to Mark Brantley, the Minister assigned
to the geothermal project.

DEEP’s first plant is
expected to be built in two
years. It’s expected the aquifer
will be able to support acapacity of roughly 200
megawatts with several units
betweenfive
and10
megawatts of power; multiple
unites would be required togenerate the amount of power
needed in Saskatchewan.
Source:https://globalnews.ca/news/
3905709/saskpowergeothermal-power-plant-renewable-electricity-deepcorp/
Royal Consent to Bill C-63 - Bill C-63, A second Act toimplement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on
March 22, 2017 and other measures has received royalassent and is now law. According to the Canadian
Geothermal Energy Association (CanGEA), the Bill
implies:- Accelerated capital cost allowance has been extended
to a broader range of geothermal projects and expenses(including eligibility for transmission equipment
expenses);- The range of geothermal energy project expenses thatare eligible as Canadian renewable and conservation
expenses, can be fully deducted in the year incurred;- Geothermal projects can claim exploration wells andflow-through shares for all project types as well as otherheat transfer equipment.
Those changes represent major policy victories for
CanGEA in 2017, as they are a direct result of
CanGEA’s federal government outreach efforts.
Source: https://www.cangea.ca/news-blog/royalassent-of-bill-c-63-2017-federal-budget-policy-victoryfor-cangea
www.geothermal-energy.org

Nevis Renewable Energy International (NREI) has been
contracted for the exploration of geothermal sources in
Nevis. The drilling contractors DOSECC, based in Salt
Lake City, Utah, have also partnered with NREI toconduct and complete the well installation.
Once completed, the well is expected to provide thegeothermal reservoir data needed for design the turbine
and production installations.
It is estimated that Nevis has up to 300 MW ofgeothermal power and some estimates calculate as manyas 650 MW. As Nevis becomes energy self-sufficient, its
renewable resources could benefit nearby island nations
through the construction of a submarine cable. After
recent Hurricanes Irma and Maria damaged parts of the
Caribbean, it is the goal of the eastern Caribbean
nations to implement more resilient renewable energy
and geothermal can provide 24/7 power to support
these efforts.
With an established goal to eliminate CO2 emissions
from power generation, Nevis is committed to leverage
its proven geothermal resources and become thegreenest island on the planet. Nevis will be the first
Caribbean island to utilize Binary Organic Rankine
Cycle (ORC) geothermal power generation that utilizes
a closed-loop system with zero carbon emissions.
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

12

Minister Brantley said, “If we can achieve what we
intend to achieve here, it would mean that Nevis will
become fossil fuel free for this generation of electricity
and it would put us in a category of our own in the
Caribbean and perhaps the world in terms of being
completely sustainable for our electricity supply.”
Sources: http://www.thestkittsnevisobserver.com/localnews/geothermal-begin-wells-completed-january-2018/,
http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/exploration-drillingto-start-for-geothermal-project-on-nevis-caribbean/
Grant to Risk Mitigation Program to Help
Geothermal Development – A new Geothermal Risk
Mitigation Program for the Eastern Caribbean has been
set up with funding by the European Union. The EUR
12 million (US$14 million) funding will help five
Caribbean countries (Dominica, Grenada, St KittsNevis, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines) on
their geothermal development efforts of up to 60MW ofgeothermal capacity.
The agreement was signed on behalf of the Caribbean
Development Bank (CDB), by Warren Smith and theCommissioner in charge of International Cooperation
and Development, Neven Mimica.
“The program will help to increase renewable energies
in the Caribbean by supporting the development ofgeothermal energy,” said Mimica, adding that the grant
will serve to jump start geothermal development
through co-financing for higher-risk investments
required at the early stage services of exploratory drillingwhich could leverage additional financing ofapproximately EUR 400 million (US$490 million).
“It will decrease dependency on energy imports –reducing fuel import bills, electricity costs and help todecrease greenhouse gases emissions and otherpollutants,” Mimica added.
Smith said that the CDB welcomes the EU-CIF’s
contribution to geothermal energy development in the
Eastern Caribbean. “This funding will add momentum
to our on-going efforts to transform the energy sector in
the Region, and support ourborrowing member countries
in harnessing their renewableenergy resources. The signingof this agreement represents astrengthening
partnership
between CDB and theEuropean Union.
“We look forward tocollaborating
further
tosupport economic growth andcompetitiveness, and creating
a more sustainable future forthe people of our region,” hewww.geothermal-energy.org

added.
The funding will be used to provide investment grants
at the exploration phase, as well as technical assistanceto support capacity-building initiatives and studies that
explore opportunities for, and the feasibility of,interconnection between islands to facilitate the exportof electricity by geothermal energy producers, the CDB
added.
Source: http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/new-eugrant-to-risk-mitigation-program-to-help-caribbeangeothermal-development/

Chile: Geothermal in Last
Power Auction, Solar andStorage in Cerro Pabellón
33MW Geothermal Project Wins in Last Power
Auction - Enel S.p.A., acting through its subsidiary
Enel Generación Chile, has been awarded the supply of1180 GWh per year to a number of Chilean distribution
companies through the tender launched by the country’s
National Energy Commission (Comisión Nacional deEnergía), and aimed at meeting the energy demand of
regulated market customers over the 2024-2043 period.
The Group won 54% of the 2200 GWh per year offeredin the tender, which will be provided by a mix of new
renewable projects comprising of 116 MW of solar, 93
MW of wind and 33 MW of geothermal for a total
capacity of 242 MW.
The 242 MW of new renewable capacity are based onsolar and geothermal plants located in the Antofagasta
region, in Northern Chile, as well as on a wind farm
located in the Araucanía region, in Southern Chile. Enel
did not inform which project or projects comprise the33 MW of geothermal power to be constructed in
Northern Chile, but Think GeoEnergy considers it will
be an expansion of the 48MW Cerro Pabellón
geothermal power plant, for which the company alreadysought a permit to expand the capacity.
The tender was launched following Chile’s General

Panoramic view of Cerro Pabellón. Photo by EGP.
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
Power Service Law (Ley General de Servicios
Eléctricos) No. 4 from 2006, shaping the regulatory
framework for public tenders in order to provide
distribution system operators with long-term power
supply contracts with generators that would enable
them to meet the power consumption needs ofregulated market customers in their concession areas. It
is important to mention that the weighted average priceof the energy in this tender was US$32.5 per megawatthour –a new minimum international record, with thelowest solar-price priced at US$21.5/MWh.
As far as it is known, this is only the second time ageothermal project is among the winning projects in a
public power auction, being the first a 25MW power
plant in the Los Azufres geothermal field, Mexico (seeIGA News 105, p. 14, and IGA News 109, pp. 45-46).
Sources:
https://www.enelgreenpower.com/es/medios/press/d
201711-enel-wins-242-mw-of-new-solar-wind-andgeothermal-capacity-in-chiles-tender.html,
http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/enel-wins-tender-on33-mw-geothermal-capacity-addition-in-chile/,
https://renewablesnow.com/news/average-prices-inchilean-power-tender-fall-to-usd-325mwh-589701/

13

Mexico: New Power Plant &Results of Third Power
AuctionMexico’s Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), thegovernment-owned electricity utility, announced on 22nd
November 2017 the official inauguration of a 25MW
geothermal power plant. It is Los Humeros III – Phase
A, a single-flash condensing plant of 25 megawatts ofnet capacity installed at the Los Humeros, State of
Puebla, geothermal field. Los Humeros is the thirdlargest and oldest field in Mexico, and is operated by thesame CFE.
CFE said US$47 million was invested in theconstruction of the new facility, which was planned toreplace three old back-pressure units of 5MW each touse more efficiently the same amount of steam. With
this plant, the installed capacity in Los Humeros reaches
94 MW.

Geothermal, PV and Hybrid Storage in Cerro
Pabellón – The Cerro Pabellón plant is located at aremote and uninhabited place in the Atacama Desert, in
the Antofagasta region of Chile. It’s at 4,500 meters
above sea level, in one of the most arid places in theworld, with temperatures varying from -20°C at nightand 30°C during the day and, in some areas, it has notrained for centuries.
Besides the 48MW geothermal power plant, there is anenergy storage system that provides constant electricity
to the small village of Ollagüe and, since January 2017,
also a hybrid system that integrates a solar plant with alithium ion battery and hydrogen storage.
The hybrid storage system integrated with thephotovoltaic field is the latest innovation connected tothe plant. It was designed to provide clean energy 24/7
to the Cerro Pabellón base camp, which hosts Enel
Green Power technicians working at the plant. The
project, completed in the first quarter of 2017, wasofficially inaugurated on 31 May and passed definitively
to the management of our Operation & Maintenanceteam on 11 October.

The CFE’s General Director during theinauguration ceremony.

The project created for the Cerro Pabellón base camp
can function in both off-grid and on-grid modes and ismanaged by an advanced control system to optimize
energy flows and to guarantee a constant supply clean
energy.

The company said that currently, about 20% of
Mexico’s electricity comes from clean energy sources, ofwhich CFE generates three quarters. Mexico aims togenerate 35% of its electricity from clean energy sourcesby 2024 and has just completed its third long-term
power auction, which will lead to the construction of
2562 MW capacity –1323 MW of solar plants, 689 MW
of wind farms and one 550-MW clean-gas plant,
representing 1.8% of annual generation. The average
price of clean electricity plus clean energy certificates(CEL) was US$ 20.57 per MWh+CEL, the lowest
globally at that moment.

Source:https://www.enelgreenpower.com/stories/a/2018/01/
chile-on-the-frontier-of-innovation

This third long-term implies about US$ 2.37 billion to
be invested in the next three years in 15 new power
plants. Solar photovoltaic (PV) was the leadingwww.geothermal-energy.org

January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
technology, securing 55.35% of the power supply
contracts, while wind won 44.65%. Solar and wind also
secured 1.69% and 13.95%, respectively of the firm
capacity component of the competition, where thedominant technology was gas.
Sources:
http://saladeprensa.cfe.gob.mx/boletines/show/8477/,
https://renewablesnow.com/news/mexicos-prelimtender-results-show-average-price-of-usd-2057mwh591263/

U.S.: Tungsten Power Plant,Awards for GeothermalTechnologies
Tungsten Mountain Power Plant Started to Operate- Ormat Technologies Inc. announced that the 24MW
Tungsten Mountain geothermal power plant located in
Churchill County, Nevada, began commercial operation
on December 1, 2017. Tungsten Mountain will sell its
power under the 26-year Ormat Northern Nevada
Geothermal Portfolio Power Purchase Agreement(PPA) with the Southern California Public Power
Authority (SCPPA), which was announced in June 2017.
SCPPA resells the entire output of the plant to the Los
Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP).
The power plant is expected to generate approximately
US$15 million in average annual revenue.

The Tungsten Mountain geothermal power plant utilizes
Ormat’s latest turbine design, and is the largest Ormat
Energy Converter (OEC) ever installed. Utilizing the
new generation of Ormat turbines will allow theTungsten Mountain project to generate an average net
output of 24MW from a single OEC instead of twoOECs, as would have been required before this new
www.geothermal-energy.org

14
design became available. This reduced the CapEx
invested in manufacturing and constructing the power
plant, and is expected to significantly reduce the power
plant’s operating costs. The new and innovative turbine
design will increase the OEC efficiency, capacity, andavailability.
Isaac Angel, CEO of Ormat Technologies said,“Commercial operation of the Tungsten Mountainproject brings our operating portfolio to a total of 800
MW, demonstrating double-digit growth of ourportfolio since the beginning of the year. This growth
will provide a meaningful contribution to our results in2018 and beyond. The innovative Tungsten Mountaingeothermal power plant is the first power plant to sell
power under the portfolio PPA with SCPPA that weannounced earlier this year. The Tungsten Mountainpower plant is a greenfield project that was built at arecord pace, demonstrating again Ormat’s competitive
advantage as the only vertically integrated company inthe geothermal industry. Our unique capabilities of bothdeveloping resources and utilizing proprietary
technology enables us to deliver on time and on budget,
while constantly improving our technology to maximize
efficiencies.”
Source:http://investor.ormat.com/file/Index?KeyFile=391543
763
Two R&D 100 Awards for GeothermalTechnologies - Los Alamos National Laboratory(LANL) is a United States Department of Energy(DOE) national laboratory based in New Mexico. By
middle November 2017 it was announced that eight
innovations developed by LANL had won R&D 100
Awards. The R&D Awards are deemed as the ‘Oscars
of Invention’ and are granted annually by the R&D
Magazine. The awards honor the latest and best
innovations and identify the top technology products ofthe past year. The R&D 100 Awards span industry,
academia
andgovernment-sponsoredresearchorganizations. Two of the 2017 awards were forgeothermal energy applications:
Discrete Fracture Network Modeling Suite (dfnWorks):
Transforming simulations of flow and transport through fractured
rock – This is a computational suite that simulates andpredicts the flow and transport of fluids throughunderground fractured rock. It covers length scales that
range from millimeters to kilometers, can run on
computers as small as a laptop and as large as asupercomputer and requires minimal effort to create
representative models. Applications for dfnWorks
include helping catch rogue nations performing
underground nuclear tests and maximizing theextraction of natural gas, oil and geothermal wells while
minimizing environmental impacts.
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IGA News No. 110
High-Temperature Electric Submersible Pump Motor (HTESP): Keeping pump motors cool in deeper, extremely hot
environments – HT-ESP is rugged and reliable, offering
improved thermal performance compared toconventional submersible pumps used in deep
underground and extremely hot environments. Whether
electric submersible pump motors are used in drilling
deeper for oil and gas reservoirs or tapping into
geothermal resources of energy, they must operate inharsh, extremely hot environments. Current pump
motors overheat and must be replaced often. To solve
this, the Los Alamos and the Chevron Energy
Technology Company research team developed two
technologies for HT-ESP to lower the internal
operating temperature of the motor. Los Alamos
submitted the HT-ESP as a joint entry with Chevron.
Todd Jankowski led a Los Alamos team of Dallas Hill,
Britton Lambson, James Stewart, Robert Bourque andCoyne Prenger. Chevron collaborators include Jose
Gamboa, Daniel Hunt, Max Bough and Yamila Orrego.

15
The company wants to create 20 smokeless cities during
the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-20), covering 100
km2.
“The country accounts for one-sixth of the world’s
geothermal energy. At present, available geothermal
power each year is equivalent to 640 million metric tonsof standard coal, which can reduce carbon dioxide
emissions by 1.3 billion tons,” Lyu said.

Source:http://www.lanl.gov/discover/news-releasearchive/2017/November/1120-rd-100-awards.php

ASIA/PACIFIC RIM
China: Sinopec Exploration in
Xiongan, Geothermal Industry
Alliance
Sinopec Targets Xiongan for Geothermal - On lateNovember 2017, the state-owned China Petroleum &Chemical Corp, known as Sinopec, said it will further
develop geothermal energy in Xiongan New Area,
Hebei province, as it seeks to make the smog-ridden
region smokeless.

In 2016, to promote clean energy development andimprove the environment, China launched the 13 th FiveYear Plan for geothermal energy, the first such plan inthis field. According to the plan, the country plans toincrease its installed geothermal energy capacity by 500
gigawatts by 2020.

Sinopec Star Petroleum Ltd, Sinopec’s geothermalenergy development arm, said it would increase thegeothermal and other new-energy heating area in
Xiongan by 10 square kilometers (km2) to 16 million m2
in 2017.

Source:http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/business/201711/27/content_35042451.htm

In 2016, by replacing coal with geothermal energy, thegeothermal heating area in Xiongxian county, part of
Xiongan New Area, reached 4.5 km2, making it the firstregion to achieve its smokeless city plan.
Lyu Dapeng, director of the publicity department of
Sinopec Group, said the oil giant and the Hebei
provincial government agreed early 2017 to promote theuse of geothermal energy in Xiongan New Area.
“We aim to make the region an example of geothermalenergy utilization for the world,” said Lyu.

www.geothermal-energy.org

Geothermal Industry Alliance - In other news, it was
unveiled that on December 8, 2017, the China National
Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) has founded ageothermal industry alliance. The alliance is an attempt
to meet China’s demand for the exploitation andutilization of geothermal energy, accelerate thedevelopment of the geothermal industry, implement thenational strategy for constructing a green and beautiful
country, and eventually to benefit all of humanity.
CNNC Geothermal Industry Alliance is anunincorporated body with the purpose of boosting thegeothermal industry and promoting the exploitation andutilization of China’s geothermal energy.

January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
The allied association is guided by national industrial
polices and is oriented to market demand. It aims tocreate a resource sharing platform for the company’s
geothermal energy exploitation, innovative research anddevelopment, and industrial coordination andapplication. It’s expected to build a clean, low-carbon,
safe and efficient energy system in the near future.
Source: http://en.cnnc.com.cn/201712/14/c_119804.htm

Indonesia: Demonstration
Power Plant, RE Potential,
Risk Mitigation Facility, New
Tariff Regulation
Commissioning of a Geothermal Low-Temperature
Demonstration Power Plant - In September 2017, thefirst geothermal low-temperature demonstration power
plant in Indonesia has been successfully commissioned
at the geothermal field in Lahendong close to the village
Pangolombian, North Sulawesi. The demonstration
plant is in test-operation.
The concept of the demonstration power plant has beendeveloped by the Helmholtz Centre Potsdam – GFZ
German Research Centre for Geosciences, incollaboration with the Indonesian project partners
BPPT (Agency for the Assessment and Application ofTechnology) and PGE (Pertamina Geothermal Energy).
The project was funded by the German Ministry of
Education and Research (BMBF). The aim of thiscollaboration is to demonstrate reliable and efficient
low-temperature power generation at a geothermal site
in Indonesia and to create the basis for a broader
application in Indonesia.
The demonstration plant is designed to cool down partof the unused geothermal brine from 170°C to 140°C
and thus generate electricity. During the test-operation,
the temperature of the geothermal fluid is 145°C, which
results in an electric power output of approximately 300
kW. In normal operation, an electrical capacity of up to
500 kW shall be reached. Assuming the average electric
power consumption in Germany, this is enough to
supply electricity for 1,200 households.
The geothermal demonstration plant is based on an
Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) connected by closed
water intermediate circuits (a hot water and a cold waterintermediate circuit) to the geothermal heat source andthe environment as heat sink.
Building on the experience of the development andoperating phase of the demonstration power plant, theimplementation of low-temperature power planttechnology for Indonesia can be decisively advanced.
With the establishment of this technology, it is possible
www.geothermal-energy.org

16
to extend the electrical capacity of existing geothermalsites and, above all, to provide an option for thedecentralized energy supply in Indonesia.
The research and demonstration operation of the lowtemperature power plant is to be continued under theleadership of the GFZ until the middle of 2018. The
demonstration plant will then be handed over to an
Indonesian partner organization.
Source: http://www.gfz-potsdam.de/en/mediacommunication/news/details/article/inbetriebnahmedes-geothermischen-niedertemperaturdemonstrationskraftwerks-in-lahendong-indonesien/
Potential of Renewable Energy - Indonesia, with theworld’s fourth largest population, has an aggressive goal
to increase the share of renewable energy in the
country’s energy mix to 23% by 2025. Indonesia willserve as a model for clean energy deployment, especiallyfor island nations, while providing a growing market foradvanced renewable energy technologies worldwide.
With an expected population of 285 million by 2025, thegreatest challenges of Indonesia to achieve universal
electrification is their remote regions and islands thatcurrently heavily depend on high-cost diesel fuel that isoften imported and transported over long distances.
Here are the total estimated potential for several
renewable energy sources, and targets for 2025 and2025, according to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral
Resources:

New & Renewable
Energy Sources

Capacity Power Plants (GW)
Total
Potential

2025
Target2050
TargetGeothermal

29.5

7.2

17.5

Hydro Power

75.0

21.0

45.0

Bioenergy

32.0

5.5

26.1

Solar

532.0

6.5

45.0

Wind

113.5

1.8

28.6

Other

--

3.1

6.4

782.0

45.1

168.6

TOTAL
Source: MEMR, 2017

Source: RE4I, Renewable Energy for Indonesia
Conference (http://www.there4i.org/)
Geothermal Risk Mitigation Facility Planned forIndonesia - With support from the World Bank (WB)
and other partners, the government of Indonesia isplanning a new Geothermal Risk Mitigation Facility.
This would leverage several billion dollars in private
sector funding, unlocking investments through risk
mitigation for exploration and early production drilling.
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IGA News No. 110
This would allow investors to prove sufficient resources
to attract commercial finance for large-scale
development. Over the next seven years it is expectedthat the facility will lead to the development of morethan 1 GW of new geothermal capacity.
This new facility builds on a long engagement aroundgeothermal energy in Indonesia. In 2012 the WB
supported the government through a grant from the
Global Environment Facility (GEF) to undertake key
reforms to enhance the investment climate forgeothermal development. It also helped Pertamina
Geothermal Energy (PGE) to kick-start its ambitious
geothermal expansion program through a US$175
million IBRD loan, along with concessional financing of
US$125 million from the Clean Technology Fund
(CTF).
More recently, in 2017, the WB provided US$55.25
million in grants to support the Geothermal Energy
Upstream Development Project in Indonesia, whichaims to facilitate investment in geothermal power
generation in the country. The Clean Technology Fund
(CTF) is contributing US$49 million to support
infrastructure development and exploration drilling. The
Global Environment Facility (GEF) contributes anadditional US$6.25 million to support technicalassistance aimed at building capacity in geothermal
exploration, including safeguards due diligence. The
Ministry of Finance and PT. Sarana Multi Infrastruktur,
a state-owned infrastructure financing company, will
match the CTF funding for the Project.
Indonesia has a target of increasing the share of new
and renewable energy in its primary energy mix to 23
percent by 2025, including by adding 5.8 GW ofgeothermal capacity. According to the WB, theGeothermal Risk Mitigation Facility will help Indonesia
meet this target by leveraging billions of dollars incommercial financing to develop more than 1 GW of
new geothermal capacity. Indonesia currently has
around 1.8 GW of geothermal electricity; its total
potential is 29 GW. Using Indonesia as a model, othercountries can potentially apply a similar approach toscaling up the use of geothermal energy.
Source:http://www.worldbank.org/en/results/2017/12/01/geothermal?cid=CCG_TT_climatechange_EN_EXTPertamina Elaborates New Scheme for Geothermal
Electricity Tariff Regulation - PT Pertamina (Persero)
is supporting the new government regulation as
stipulated in Ministerial Regulation No. 50 of 2017 on
the Development of New and Renewable Energy (EBT)
which opens opportunities for the process ofdetermining tariffs by way of business-to-business (B2B)
between state electricity company PLN and independent
power developers (IPP).
www.geothermal-energy.org

17
Pertamina President Director Elia Massa Manikwelcomed the regulation. According to him in the next
few years, Pertamina will still develop geothermal energy
and this regulation will accelerate the development of
renewable energy, such as geothermal, biomass, hydro,
solar, and others.

Elia Massa Manik, Pertamina’s President Director.
“Investment-friendly regulation and support for futureclean energy creation is positive. We have built ageothermal power plant with an installed capacity of 587
MW. The potential is huge, out of a total of 29
gigawatts, newly installed one is still less than 3
gigawatts. Therefore, regulation has an important role inthe development of geothermal energy in the future,”
said Massa in a written statement on middle December
2017.
Likewise, the Director of Geothermal of Directorate
General of New Energy, Renewable Energy and Energy
Conservation of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral
Resources Yunus Saefulhak said the new regulation
enables the B2B scheme if the average production costof electricity generation is deemed inadequate.
He pointed out the Rantau Dedap Geothermal Power
Plant project located in Muara Enim and Lahat regency,
Pagar Alam City, South Sumatera, in the end its
electricity price is determined through a power purchaseagreement (PPA) amendment process.
“From the target of renewable energy mix of 23 percent
in 2025, about 7,200 MW or 16 percent will come fromgeothermal… first and foremost the regulation must
provide support,” explained Yunus.
Source:http://www.en.netralnews.com/news/business/read/1
6222/pertamina.elaborates.new.scheme.for.geothermal.electricity.tariff.regulation
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

18Philippines: Maibarara
Expansion in Operation, Draft
Rules on Renewables

power station built in Luzon in 16 years and the firstrenewable energy project declared commercial by the
Energy Department under the Renewable Energy Law
of 2008.

Maibarara 12MW Expansion Commissioned in
December - Maibarara Geothermal Inc. said its 12megawatt geothermal expansion project in Batangas met
the December 2017 target for commercial operation.
The expansion brings Maibarara’s total capacity to 32
MW.

Source: http://thestandard.com.ph/business/powertechnology/250648/maibarara-expansion-to-meetdecember-goal.html

MGI power plant manager Paul Morala said thecompany, along with National Grid Corporation of thePhilippines (NGCP), installed the revenue meter ofMaibarara-2 on September 30.
He said Maibarara and Manila Electric Co. engineers
successfully completed on October 24 the testing of
Maibarara-2’s protection relays and circuit breakers.
“We commend the highly professional and helpful
cooperation we have received from NGCP and
Meralco. We anticipate such cooperation to continue
and to extend as well to other agencies such as the DoE(Department of Energy), ERC (Energy Regulatory
Commission), and PEMC (Philippine Electricity Market
Corp.) as the unit’s commissioning and testing enter
their final phases,” Morala said.

DoE Asks for Comments on Draft Rules - The
Department of Energy (DoE) has solicited comment
from the industry on a proposed circular that seeks toamend previous rules governing the transparent andcompetitive system of awarding renewable energy
service contracts. In the draft circular, the DoE has
included biomass projects as one of two renewableenergy technologies that may be owned by foreign
corporations, besides geothermal projects.
“In the case of the exploration, development or
utilization of biomass and geothermal resources, theapplicant may either be a Filipino or foreign, natural or
juridical, citizen,” according to the draft, which has a
January 2018 target issuance date.
The proposed department circular (DC) amends DC
2009-09-0011 or the guidelines governing a transparent
and competitive system of awarding renewable energy
or operating contracts. Under DC 2009-09-0011, only
the development of geothermal resources is listed as
open to foreign ownership.
The draft circular also does away with the ‘blocking
system’ of subdividing the Philippine territory by the
DoE into blocks of half minute of latitude and half
minute of longitude, covering an area of 81 hectareswith a designated block number, which is used
exclusively in identifying the coverage of a contract area.
The draft circular has retained much of the qualification
set for who may apply for renewable energy (RE)contracts, or a service agreement between thegovernment, through the President or the DoE, and an
RE developer over an appropriate period as determinedby the department. That period gives the developer the
exclusive right to explore, develop or utilize a particular
RE area.

First Unit of Maibarara. Photo by MGI.

Maibarara’s existing 20 MW Unit-1 in Sto. Tomas,
Batangas, meanwhile, reached its 600 GWh generation
mark during the billing period ending October 25.
Maibarara said the milestone was achieved three years
and eight months from the start of the facility’scommercial operation on February 8, 2014. The firstphase of the Maibarara project was the first geothermal
www.geothermal-energy.org

A provision on the eligibility of an RE applicant — orany entity, whether individual or juridical, local orforeign, including joint venture or consortium of local,
foreign, or local and foreign firms — has required thePresident’s approval on geothermal resource
development.
Source: http://bworldonline.com/doe-draft-rulesallow-foreign-ownership-biomass-projects/

South Korea: Investigation on
Possible Correlation ofJanuary-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

Geothermal Activities with
Earthquake
On 15 November 2017 an earthquake with a magnitudeof 5.4 occurred near Pohang in South Korea. This
earthquake is the second-largest on record in Korea
after the magnitude 5.8 Gyeongju event, which occurredin 2016, 40 km from Pohang. It triggered numerous
aftershocks in the following months.
There may be concerns regarding a connection between
the November 2017 earthquake and the nearby Pohang
geothermal project due to the close proximity andshallow depth of the earthquake. Analysis is underway
regarding the injection activities in the two deep
boreholes (4.3 km and 4.2 km) at Pohang.

19“Injecting water into the earth can reduce friction on a
fault line, causing movement and potentially triggering amajor earthquake in an area that is already underpressure. There have been steady reports of similar
incidents overseas,” said Lee Jin-han, a professor at the
department of earth and environmental science at Korea
University.
“The fact that a small amount of water was injected at
the geothermal plant at Pohang and that a large numberof micro-earthquakes had occurred previously prevent
us from concluding that the Pohang earthquake
occurred because of the geothermal plant,” said Hong
Tae-gyeong, a professor in the department of earthsystem science at Yonsei University.
The Pohang geothermal plant has injected a total of
12,000 m3 of water on four or five occasions since 2016
and then removed some of that water, and currently
about 5,000 m3 remains underground.
“Analyzing the moment tensor, which expresses thephenomena that brought about the seismic waves as a
combination of forces, shows that the Pohang
earthquake could have been an earthquake that occurred
on a complex fault plane, unlike ordinary earthquakes.
But the possibility that it was affected by high-pressureliquid appears to be low,” said Lee Jun-gi, a professor ofgeological and environmental science at Seoul National
University.
Sources:
http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_nation
al/820906.html,
http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/correlation-ongeothermal-work-with-recent-earthquake-beinginvestigated-in-south-korea/

The epicenter of the Pohang Earthquake (red) alongwith the aftershocks (yellow) (Provided by Korea
Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, andtaken from the first source).
Following the three previous hydraulic stimulations at
this site, the DESTRESS team, composed ofinternational experts, conducted hydraulic stimulation in
August 2017, followed by flow-back of 100% of theinjected water. This treatment did not induce any
seismic activity larger than magnitude 2.0. It was
followed by additional injections, which ended on 18
September, two months before the recent Pohang
earthquake. Even though no larger seismic events wereobserved during this treatment, the DESTRESS teamsaid is willing to collaborate with South-Korean partners
and authorities to investigate the possible link between
the 15 November earthquake and the previous injection
activities at Pohang.
www.geothermal-energy.org

Taiwan: Nuclear Plants toGeothermal Plants,
Exploration in Mt. Datun,
Feed-in Tariffs
Nuclear Facilities to Be Transformed into
Geothermal Plants - The Atomic Energy Council(AEC) was considering to launch a plan by the end of2017 that would see nuclear power plants transformed
into geothermal power generation facilities, according to
the AEC Minister Hsieh Shou-shing.
The three operating nuclear plants in Taiwan are to be
decommissioned one after the other until 2025 and thisretirement is proceeding as scheduled, Hsieh told thelegislature’s Education and Culture Committee, addingthat the council has also funded efforts to study ‘green’
energy in recent years.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Rosalia
Wu said the council should be tasked with theJanuary-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

20development of geothermal power, given that a viable
source can be found about 20km beneath the Guosheng
Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Wanli
District. One of Wu’s references was an article by Wang
Shou-cheng published on TechNews in March 2017, in
which Wang encouraged the government to set up ageothermal energy development zone in Wanli andJinshan districts, where two nuclear power plants arelocated.

development of relevant technologies by otherindividuals or institutes, Taiwan may be able to extract
heat energy from underground more efficiently.

If Taiwan hopes to generate 20 percent of its electricity
from renewable sources, geothermal power should not
be marginalized in consideration of different sources,
Wu said. The government should consider launching amore progressive plan to make use of the geothermalenergy stored beneath the Guosheng plant, Wu said,
adding that the AEC must play a more active role insuch a plan.

Increase in Geothermal Feed-in Tariffs - In othernews, by middle December 2017 it was unveiled that toaccelerate geothermal energy system installations, theMinistry of Economic Affairs has increased the feed-in
tariff to NT$ 6.1710 (US$ 0.205) per kilowatt-hour fromthe proposed NT$ 5.6447 (US$ 0.188) for the first 10
years of the installations’ subsidiary period, explainingthat the new tariff aims to help operators reduce theirinitial risk. The tariff would drop to NT $3.5685 (US$0.119) per unit for the remaining 10 years of the 20 year
subsidiary period, lower than the NT $4.4465 (US$0.148) per unit previously proposed.

Also expressing his support for geothermal power,
Hsieh promised to propose a preliminary plan todevelop sources of geothermal energy beneath nuclear
power plants by the end of December 2017.
Source:http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2
017/11/07/2003681827
Probable Exploration Study in Mt. Datun in 2018 State-run oil refiner CPC Co., Taiwan (CPC) is currently
developing new techniques to directly extract
geothermal heat from underground and plans to study
the feasibility of these techniques on Mt. Datun, in
suburban Taipei, next year, the company's new head has
said.
“Technology can leap,” said CPC Chairman Tai Chein,
who assumed the office in November 2017, when asked
about the company’s response to the government’s
nuclear-free homeland policy, which aims to close all
Taiwan’s nuclear power plants by 2025.
Tai mentioned CPC’s failed terrestrial heat exploration
program in Yilan County, where the company drilled its
first geothermal heat well in 1976.

Tai said that as part of the CPC’s renewed research, thecompany plans to conduct a study of the Datun volcanogroup in northern Taiwan next year.
Source:https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3322505

The feed-in tariffs for other renewable energy
installations were cut by less than initially planned to
speed up the nation’s ‘green’ energy goals.
Source:http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2017/12/16/2003684029

Vietnam: Minister Urges
Geothermal ResearchVietnam’s national energy development plan does notinclude geothermal sources, but a senior official said
that it was time to study their potential in the country.
Nguyễn Linh Ngọc, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of
Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE), wasspeaking at a conference held in Hanoi on geothermalenergy in the Asia-Pacific region. The conference was

Although that program led to the inauguration of
Taiwan's first terrestrial heat-propelled power plant in
1981, inefficiency resulted in the closure of the plant in
1993.
Tai said that in the intervening period new technologies
have been developed and advanced facilities established.
Meanwhile, in accordance with the government’s green
energy policy, CPC has also resumed research into newtechnique that will allow the generation of electricity
using geothermal heat drawn from wells without water(Enhanced Geothermal Systems).
Taiwan’s research into geothermal heat was relatively
superficial in the past, Tai said, but following thewww.geothermal-energy.orgNguyễn Linh Ngọc addresses in the conference. Photo:
MoNRE.
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IGA News No. 110
organized by the Vietnam Institute of Geoscience andMineral Resources and the Geothermal Implementing
Agreement (IEA Geothermal). It is an initiative of theInternational Energy Agency (IEA) aimed to boost
international cooperation on geothermal energy
production and use.
Ngọc said that small-sized hydropower plants provide
70 per cent of the country’s total energy output, leaving
biogas/biomass a distant second at 14 per cent, while
renewable energy, including solar and wind energy, bothaccount for about 6 per cent. Meanwhile, geothermalenergy has remained a complete no-show. Feasibility
studies were only recently conducted in the central
provinces of Quảng Bình and Quảng Trị.
Ngọc said that energy production accounted for the
release of 30 per cent of global greenhouse gas
emissions, but in Vietnam the figure was more than 50
per cent because of pollution from fossil fuels-basedenergy plants.
In 2015, at COP21, the UN Climate Change Conferencein Paris, Vietnam pledged to unconditionally cut its
greenhouse gas emissions by 8 per cent by 2030
compared to business-as-usual (BAU) projections, or by
up to 25 per cent if international support wasforthcoming.
In the conference, experts and scientists from many
countries discussed direct use of geothermal power andground-source heat pumps (GSHP), the benefits ofgeothermal energy and geothermal power production,and technologies for the treatment of geothermal
reservoirs to enhance electricity generation.
The many socio-economic benefits of geothermalenergy were also highlighted, including energy security,
improved ecology and low emissions.
Source:http://vietnamnews.vn/society/417492/deputyminister-urges-geothermalresearch.html#GDiCiObbv4DA9kmV.97

EUROPE
Europe:EGEC
Supports
Renewable
EnergyReport
The geothermal sector has expressed support for
Spanish MEP José Blanco López’ report on the
Renewable Energy Directive adopted on late November
www.geothermal-energy.org

21
2017 in the European Parliament’s Committee on
Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE), which strongly
backs a 35% target for renewables and 40% energy
efficiency in the European Union by 2030.
Philippe Dumas, European Geothermal Energy Council(EGEC secretary general, said: “The level of ambition
shown by the parliament on renewables and efficiency isgood, but it is only a minimum threshold to stayconsistent with the Paris Agreement.”
It also provides investors with a better long-term
perspective, which is needed to plan significant
investments by reinforcing the commission proposal on
support schemes. Such measures are essential tomaintaining the dynamism of European renewableenergy industries, including geothermal.
The committee, under the impulsion of rapporteur
Blanco López, and with broad support, builds on thecommission proposal to deliver ambitious provisions
for the heating and cooling sector, giving guidelines foran accelerated deployment of renewables in the largest
segment of Europe’s energy consumption.
“For Europe to be a true climate and energy leader, thede-carbonization of the heating and cooling sector must
be undertaken, and this report provides sound basis for
this,” Dumas added.
Meanwhile, the Energy Efficiency vote validated astrong ambition level, supported by robust provisions incontinuing the energy savings obligations inherited fromthe previous version of the Directive, while still allowing
the subsidy of fossil fuel appliances in the name of
marginal efficiency gains –with effect of locking in fossil
fuel dependency.
“But the ITRE committee did not manage to act on theissue of fossil fuel subsidies awarded to fossil appliancesin the name of efficiency. It must be pointed out that a
new fossil boiler locks dependency to gas, oil or coal for
decades. Renewables for heating and cooling are thesolution. We hope to see the Council taking this
responsibility” concluded Philippe Dumas.
Source: https://www.egec.org/mediapublications/geothermal-sector-welcomes-targetsrenewables-energy-efficiency-adopted-parliament-vote/

Belgium: CHP Geothermal
Plant Starts Construction inBalmatt
In early October 2017 started the construction of a
combined heat and power (CHP) geothermal plant at
the Balmatt site in Mol. During an academic meeting,the committed Ministers of the Flemish government
and their partners Atlas Copco, Eandis and IOK,
unveiled a memorial plaque at the Balmatt site, where a
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

22

third exploratory well is being drilled. With this well,
VITO’s experts want to research the geothermal
potential of the earth’s strata dating from the Devonian.
On September 2015, VITO (the Flemish institute oftechnological research) launched the project forproviding the Kempen region with sustainable heat andelectricity through geothermal energy. In 2016, twowells at a depth of 3,610 m and 4,341 m respectively,
were drilled. The pump test in the first drilling wellshowed that the output and temperature of the water
are more than sufficient to reach that goal. In
September 2016, the researchers performed tests tocheck the possibility to inject the previously pumped
water in the limestone via the second drilling well. The
results were positive.
After the injection tests, the activities shifted to the
topsoil: the construction of the geothermal energy plant,
the installation of heat exchangers and pumps and thecreation of a heat grid to the premises of VITO,SCK•CEN and BelgoProcess. The creation of the heat
grid has already been completed and on 9 October
2017, the official laying of the foundation stone of thefirst geothermal energy plant for heat and power in the
Benelux took place.

releases/deep-geothermal-energy-in-the-kempen-whats-next

Denmark: Compensation
Guarantee for Geothermal
Projects
To encourage the pursuit of geothermal energy sources,
a compensation guarantee has been put in effect per2015 for projects in Denmark. The compensation
guarantee comprises a user charge, correlating to apercentage of the budget: 13.5% for the first well, and
9% for each following well. In return, the insurance
policy covers three guarantees in total:- Drill Risk Guarantee: coverage of budget overruns
while drilling (see Figure 1).

The official opening of the finished geothermal energy
plant will follow by mid-2018. After that, the premisesof VITO, SCK•CEN and BelgoProcess will be heatedwith geothermal heat, followed by the broader Kempen
region.
VITO continues to do research into the deep Kempen
subsoil. To this end, the third exploratory drilling started
in November 2017. This well will reach a depth of atleast 4,400 m and a total length of almost 5 km, as it will
be a directional well. The results will follow in thecourse of the first few months of 2018.
Source: https://vito.be/en/media-events/press-

Figure 1. a) For budget overruns between 15% and 40% of
the approved budget, the Danish Compensation
Guarantee may cover 80% of the budget overrun. b)
Between 40% and 65%, 40% of the budget overrun may becovered. c) If the well fails or the budget overruns >100%,75% of the budget overrun may be covered.

Drilling rig in Balmatt. Photo taken from thesource.

- Total Damage Guarantee: partial coverageof drilling costs, provided the project must
be abandoned due to technical problems(Figure 1).
- Reservoir Risk Guarantee: partial coverageof drilling costs, provided that the reservoir
does not perform as expected (see Figure 2,
next page).
The implemented legislation on the Danish
Compensation Guarantee –available on
www.retsinformation.dk– was based on a
document compiled by WellPerform forEnergistyrelsen. WellPerform is a Danish
firm headquartered in Copenhagen,providing drilling services like ProjectManagement, Well Engineering, Drillingwww.geothermal-energy.org

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IGA News No. 110
Supervision, Drill Pad Design, Safety Management, Well
Examination, Logistics and Contracts.

23
attached to help release the bit on subsequent occasions.
During this process the well was cemented and redrilled at least 6 times. During one of the recovery
efforts for the drill bit an earthquake occurred, with amagnitude of -0.8 to -1.
After making it through the fault zone, rotary drilling
continued. By October 15, the well was at 5,200 m
depth with an inclination of 30°. The next step islogging of the well from 3,500 m to 5,200 m followedby continued drilling at the 30° incline. The goal is todrill to 6,200 m. Stimulation at 6,200 m is scheduled for
December 2017 or January 2018.

Figure 2. a) If the performance of a production
tested reservoir is <30% of the expected, 75% of theapproved budget may be covered for the first welldrilled. b) If the performance of a production tested
reservoir is ≥30% but <70% of the expected, a partial
amount of the budget may be covered for the firstwell drilled. c) The coverage may not amount tomore than the economic loss that the license holder
suffers as a consequence of a reduced performanceof the geothermal plant in conjunction withestimates of the expected performance.
Source: http://www.wellperform.com/geothermaldevelopment-the-danish-compensation-guarantee/

Finland: Drilling at Espoo
Geothermal Project Reaches
5,200 Meters
Excerpts from a report by Peter Malin, Adjunct Faculty in the
Huffington Department of Earth Sciences of the Southern
Methodist University (SMU).
In September 2017 drilling recommenced on the St1Deep Heat Project in Finland. Well OTN-III, which
had been drilled to 4,500 m using air drilling, switched
to water drilling. Over the course of 60 meters, threedrill bits were consumed. The decision was made to
switch to rotary drilling. Rotary drilling commenced anda “J” incline to 35° began.
At 5,020 m, with an inclination of 20°, a fault zone was
encountered. The fault zone caused a 3-week delay indrilling as the drill bit became stuck several times. Afterthe drill bit was freed the first time a Jar device waswww.geothermal-energy.org

St1 is going to be drilled 7 km down to the Espoo
bedrock, deeper than ever before in Finland. The aim of
the St1 Deep Heat Pilot project is to build Finland’s firstindustrial scale heating plant, Fortum, operating as asales partner in geothermal energy. The heating plant
itself is due to be completed in 2018 and is designed tocover 10% of Espoo’s district heating needs, whichcurrently sum 40MW thermal –all provided by fossil
fuel. Once the pilot project succeeds, technology can be
introduced elsewhere in Finland.
A self-made billionaire having made a $1.5 billion
fortune on fossil fuels, Mika Anttonen, is behind the St1
project. He’s said to be among the most passionate
renewable energy champions in his native country
Finland. His company, St1 Oy, is a Finnish energy
company owning the St1 service stations’ chain in
Finland, Sweden, Norway and Poland. The company
was established in 1995 and has now around 1,500
petrol stations. Anttonen has made a big bet on wind
power, biofuels and now on geothermal energy.
“It sure is exciting, since nobody has ever done anything
like that before. This is a bit like Jules Verne on the
Journey to the Center of the Earth”, said Mika
Anttonen.
Sources:
http://blog.smu.edu/geothermallab/2017/10/12/rotar
y-drilling-st1-deep-heat/,
http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/finnish-billionairebehind-pioneering-geothermal-heating-project-infinland/

Greece: MOU on Geothermal
Development on Santorini
IslandOn early December 2017, it was announced that thedevelopment of the geothermal fields of the island of
Santorini and the management of the urban waste of theregion were awarded to the Greek company PPC
Renewables,
followingaMemorandumof
Understanding (MOU) signed between the Deputy
Minister of Shipping and Island Policy, Nektarios
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

24

Santorinis, Mayor of Thera, Anastasios-Nikolaos Zorzos
and the CEO of PPC Renewables, Elias Monachia andapproved by the Municipal Council of Thira.

third geothermal plant of the Iceland national power
utility Landsvirkjun. The second phase of the plant, of
another 45MW, will be on-line in April.

PPC Renewables will undertake the possibility ofdeveloping geothermal energy on the island for power
generation, heating, cooling, seawater desalination anduse for hot springs.

Five exploration wells were drilled in 2002 and 2003.
The first production well drilled in 2002 was promisingand yielded 6 MW. In 2016 and 2017, 10 production
wells were drilled, including one in the Krafla area,
making the total number of wells at the Theistareykir 18,
providing enough steam for over 100MW.

The development of a geothermal power plant with the
exploitation of the geothermal potential, aims to cover
the current and future needs of the island, even in apeak period, ensuring the energy autonomy and stabilityof the island’s network. Using geothermal energy willdefinitively solve the issue of providing high-quality
drinking water to residents and visitors.
In addition, cooling-heating needs for hotels andirrigation needs can be covered by the desalination
method, giving opportunities for development and theagricultural sector.
The development of geothermal fields will be inaccordance with national and European legislation,
gradually and in full co-operation with the Municipalityof Thira and the local community, which will give evengreater impetus to tourism development, but also to
prolong the tourist season in one of the most popular
tourist destinations in the world, such as Santorini.
At the same time, PPC Renewables will contribute to
the study and management of urban waste in the area, as
well as to the development and construction of a plantusing the optimal environmental and financial
management system to produce energy. Not only the
big problem of urban waste disposal will be tackled, but
Santorini will emerge as a model island that exploits thewaste, instead of having it, outside of national andEuropean policy.
Source: http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/ppcrenewables-signs-mou-on-geothermal-development-onisland-of-santorini/

Iceland:
Theistareykir andHellisheidi Power
PlantsThe Icelander engineering and consulting firm Mannvit
played an important role in the project development onbehalf of Landsvirkjun. Mannvit prepared project design
reports, designed wells, oversaw technical supervision of
the drilling of the current wells and evaluated the size ofthe geothermal area. Mannvit also carried out project
design for high voltage lines and substations, as well as
evaluating the environmental impact (EIA) andperforming a joint EIA of high voltage lines and power
plants in the area. Mannvit, in collaboration with Verkis,
handled the overall design of the power station andpreparation of tender documents. Tark-architects andLandslag-landscape architects were also a part of themain contractor group. The turbine, generator and coldend were constructed and installed by Fuji Electric andBalcke-Durr.
Claus Ballzus, project manager, stated: “There are many
challenges due to the location of the plant. Theistareykir
is an uninhabited area, more than 300 m higher than sea
level, where there is heavy snow. Despite this,construction work could be done during the winter,thanks to the good roads that had been built.
Construction of the plant’s powerhouse commenced in
May 2015.”
Landsvirkjun is owned by the Icelandic state and is thecountry largest electricity generator, processing 75% of
all electricity used in Iceland from hydroelectric power,
wind and geothermal energy. Landsvirkjun operates 17
View of Theistareykir. Photo by Mannvit.

First Phase of Theistareykir
PlantCommissionedinNovember - The 45MW firstphase of Theistareykir geothermal
power plant was commissioned on
17th November 2017, during a
ceremony attended by high ranking
government and municipal officials
as well as Landsvirkjun andcontractor staff. The plant is the
www.geothermal-energy.org

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IGA News No. 110
power stations in Iceland, including now threegeothermal-electric.
With this first unit in operation, the total geothermal
installed capacity in Iceland is 709.4 MW.
Sources: http://www.mannvit.com/news/theistareykirgeothermal-power-plant-commissioned/,
http://www.mannvit.com/projects/theistareykirgeothermal-power-plant/
Hellisheidi Power Plant Is the First ‘NegativeEmissions’ Facility - A groundbreaking project was
initiated at the Hellisheidi geothermal plant in Iceland.
In cooperation with Iceland’s multi-utility company
Reykajvik Energy (RE), the Swiss firm Climeworks has
installed for the world’s first time a technology
combining safe and permanent geological storage withhighly scalable carbon removal technology throughdirect air capture (DAC). The pilot plant is part of the
CarbFix2 project, which has received funding from theEuropean Union’s Horizon 2020 research andinnovation program, under grant agreement No.
764760.

25
unlocks possibilities in Iceland and numerous otherregions in the world where there is a similar geologicalfoundation of basalt.
Sources: http://www.climeworks.com/climeworks-andcarbfix2-the-worlds-first-carbon-removal-solutionthrough-direct-air-capture/, The EGEC Newsletter,
October 2017.

Italy: First Greenhouse for
Algae Cultivation Heated by
Geothermal Plant
A new greenhouse heated by geothermal energy for thecultivation of Spirulina, a type of algae which is highly
nutritious and rich in iron and protein, was opened on
15th October 2017 in Chiusdino, Italy. The innovative
pilot project is the first example of geothermal heat
supplied by a nearby geothermal power plant and used
for Spirulina cultivation.

The project is centered around one of the world’s
largest geothermal power plants in Iceland, where CO2
is currently injected and mineralized at an industrial
scale. The Climeworks DAC module captures CO2 fromambient air for permanent storage underground, thus
creating a carbon removal solution which somescientific studies indicate is essential to achieving thetwo-degree climate target.
The DAC module has been installed on site, and it has
started a testing phase during which it’s expected to see
how the technology is operating in the weather
conditions of South West Iceland. The general process
is as follows:- The Climeworks DAC module captures CO2 fromambient air;- The CO2 binds to the Climeworks patented filter;- Once the filter is saturated with CO2, it is heated by
low-grade waste heat from the geothermal plant;- The CO2 is released and bound to water;- The carbonated water is pumped more than 700
meters underground;- Here, it reacts with the basaltic bedrock, forming solidminerals;
Then, a permanent, safe and irreversible storage
solution is created.
According to Climeworks, the CarbFix2 project imitates
natural processes and speeds them up rapidly. The
potential of scaling up this technology in combination
with this effective CO2 storage is enormous, since it
www.geothermal-energy.org

The greenhouse will use both geothermal heat andcarbon-free CO2 from the adjacent geothermal power
plant, a product of the geothermal energy production
process and a substitute for natural emissions, useful for
fostering the cultivation of algae. The project, which ispart of an agreement between ENEL Green Power andCo.Svi.G. for experimenting on the uses of geothermalenergy in algae cultivation signed earlier in 2017, aims todemonstrate the possibility of developing high-valuecommercial cultivation near existing geothermal power
plants, therefore increasing the economic impact
associated with geothermal energy.
The greenhouse is another example of the many directuses of geothermal energy in agricultural and foodindustry, which is increasingly turning to geothermalenergy as it meets many of the sectors’ requirements.
Source: https://www.egec.org/first-greenhouse-algaecultivation-heated-geothermal-plant-launches-today/
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

Portugal: 4MW New Power
Plant Starts to Operate inTerceira Island
A 4MW binary cycle geothermal power plant was
officially inaugurated on 20th November 2017 at Pico
Alto, Terceira Island, in the Azores. The plant was
designed and built by the Italian company EXERGY
and the Portuguese company CME for EDA
RENOVÁVEIS, owned by EDA, the Azores power
utility company.
The 4MW unit utilizes a geothermal high enthalpy
resource, exploiting the heat available both in steam
flow and geothermal brine. For this challenging project
located in a remote site, in the center of Terceira Island,1500 Km off Portugal mainland, the Consortium
EXERGY-CME supplied a turnkey solution, including
the engineering and construction of the gatheringsystems, the air cooled ORC unit equipped with
EXERGY Radial Outflow Turbine and all balance ofplant equipment.
Its tailored design has made it possible for the turbine toreach the highest possible conversion efficiency
producing up to 4.9 MW of electricity, with an averageof 4.5 MW, thus over-performing on the values
guaranteed to the client.
By means of the Pico Alto geothermal plant, EDA
Renováveis is now providing a sustainable and reliable
source of electricity to more than 56,000 inhabitants ofTerceira, meeting up to 10% of the island electricity
needs.
Participating at the inauguration ceremony, chaired by
the President of the Regional Government of the
Azores Mr. Vasco Cordeiro, Marco Bonvini COO of
EXERGY commented: “We are very proud of the26
successful completion of this challenging project. Pico
Alto represents for us a great example of how
innovation in greentech can provide sustainable
solutions to satisfy people energy needs and contributein improving the energy economics in remote andisolated site of the planet. We see many opportunities toapply our technology in remote environments and Pico
Alto is a good starting point and an excellent reference”.
Carlos Alberto Raposo Bicudo Ponte, member of EDA
Renováveis Board of Directors declared: “The Pico Alto
Geothermal Power Plant inauguration is the firstmilestone for the commercial geothermal exploitation
start up in Terceira Island, increasing the diversificationof the power generation mix and boosting thecontribution from renewables. The construction project
was a technical and management challenge, with several
contractors working at same time and, in someoccasions, in harsh climate conditions. This was
effectively overcome thanks to the close cooperationfrom all the high-specialized teams, where EXERGY
assumed successfully the lead role. We are very pleased
with the initial production results. For the first twomonths of operation, the Pico Alto power plant havebeen providing a stable and reliable supply of 4MW ofelectricity to the grid. Maintaining this high performancein 2018, the annual production of Pico Alto power plant
will likely surpass the estimative made before theconstruction of the power plant. Thus, geothermal
contribution will probably exceed 10% of the electricity
needs of Terceira, relieving this part of the power
production from thermal groups, where fossil fuels are
consumed, hence ensuring savings to the economy of
the Azores, as well as environmental benefits, reducing
the greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere.”
Source: http://exergyorc.com/communication/news/exergys-pico-alto-4mwe-geothermal-plant-nowpowering-up-terceira-island-in-theazores

The Netherlands:
Green Light for First
Geothermal Stationin The Hague
The green light was given on early
October 2017 for the so-called
Haagse Aardwarmtecentrale Leyweg(HAL). Starting next year thisgeothermal station will supply power
to homes in The Hague Southwest.

View of the Pico Alto plant. Photo by EXERGY.
www.geothermal-energy.org

The HAL will supply sustainableenergy as of 2018 from wells lying
more than 2,000 meters under theJanuary-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

27

ground. Between now and the coming five years at least
four geothermal stations will become operational in The
Hague. This number will increase to more than 10
stations in the future. Thanks to The Hague’s location,
the power can be found just beneath the earth’s surface
and this geothermal energy is an excellent source ofalternative energy.
The geothermal project in The Hague Southwest is
being restarted. The company Haagse Aardwarmte
Leyweg (HAL) took over two geothermal wells drilledin 2010 to supply heat. It is the first urban-based
geothermal station in The Hague and in the
Netherlands.
The Hague aims to become climate-neutral by 2040 andpushes all homes in the city to be disconnected from thegas grid. The Hague has decided upon geothermal
power as the most important alternative source ofsustainable energy.
More than half of the electricity consumed by The
Hague each year is generated by burning natural gas.
The gas is used primarily for heating buildings,
showering and cooking. Altogether gas burning counts
for more than 40% of The Hague’s annual carbon
dioxide emissions.
In order to make all of The Hague’s homes gas free andsustainable by 2040, an average of 10,000
homes per year need to be insulated andconnected to alternative energy sources
starting now. In addition to geothermalenergy, The Hague is also deciding in favorof wind and solar energy and heat pumps.
Newly constructed homes will no longer get a
gas connection.

license received by Turcas Kuyucak Geothermal
Electricity Generation Co. (TKJ) in 2016.
The first production drilling and short-term well flow
tests were completed in November 2014 in the businesslicense area of Aydin Kuyucak District of Aydin
Province. Between 2014 and 2016, the project drilled
seven wells, of which are 5 production and 2 reinjection
wells. The last well was successfully completed in early2017. In 2016, production potential was determined andthe first phase production module was ordered. The
temporary regulatory acceptance was completed as ofDecember 7, 2017.
The first-phase electricity production capacity has a
production license of 18MW in total. The plant is
operated in a joint venture by Turcas Petrol, throughTurcas Energy Holding Inc. (TKJ) holding 92% andAlte Enerji (8%).
On March 1, 2016, TKJ and Türkiye Sinai Kalkinma
Bankasi A.S. (TSKB) signed a 14 years loan agreementwith cash and/or non-cash loans amounting to US$ 15
million and US $ 40.5 million and non-cash loans with amaximum of 30 months principal amounting to TL 10
million. The loan has been used to finance theinvestment of the Kuyucak geothermal power plant,
totaling US$ 71.25 million (including financing costs).

An energy plan will be drawn up for eachneighborhood of The Hague. The plans will
be made together with residents, housing
corporations, power companies and experts.
Source: https://www.denhaag.nl/en/in-thecity/news/first-geothermal-station-in-thehague-in-2018-.htm
Turcas Kuyucak geothermal plant, Aydin/ Turkey (source: Turcas
Kuyucak Jeotermal Elektrik Üretim A.S., Mehmet Salim Karpuzoglu.
Taken from the source.)

Turkey: Kuyucak Power
Plant, 1053 MW of
Installed Capacity, Productionof Spirulina and Tomatoes

Kuyucak Geothermal Power Plant Has Started
Operation - A new unit of 8 MW of the Kuyucak
geothermal power plant has started operations in early
December 2017. The first unit of 10 MW has been
provisionally accepted on October 27. Thus, the power
plant has now 18 MW in capacity, according to thewww.geothermal-energy.org

Turcas Kuyucak JES will sell electricity within the scopeof YEKDEM (Renewable Energy Support Mechanismof Turkey) starting to sale electricity from January 1,
2018 for a period of 10 years. The plant will earn
US$0.118/ kWh feed-in-tariffs, with additional incentive
to use domestic equipment for electricity generated
during the first five years. In the following second fiveyear period, the electricity to produce the plant isentitled to sell at a price of $0.105/ kWh.
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

Turkey will end 2017 with electricity production of 289
terawatts-hour, with geothermal energy power plants
providing 6 TWh, or 2.1 percent of overall production.
“With the electricity we have produced in these power
plants, we have been able to prevent natural gas imports
of approximately US$650 million. Geothermal energy is
a completely domestic resource and we are happy tohave explored the sleeping ore from under the ground
thanks to a law that was passed in 2007,” he said.
Şişman said that this success was achieved throughpublic-private cooperation. He also said that Turkey can
become the largest geothermal energy producer in theworld with government assistance. He added all theplayers in the industry are locals, and that the use ofdomestic parts is accompanied by additional
contributions, citing that past year three to four power
plants benefited from domestic product incentives.
Şişman said the support mechanism to be implemented
in the geothermal industry after 2020 needs to beannounced very soon. He also stressed that it isnecessary to take precautions and deploy support
mechanisms today in order to ensure that plantinvestments that will require at least three years to beinstalled continue so that they can be commissioned
after 2020 as well.
www.geothermal-energy.org

1000

785

800

624

600
311

200

94 114
30 77

162

2012

400

405

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2011

0

2010

“We expect an investment of around US$1 billion in theindustry in 2018,” he said, adding that installed capacity
in energy power plants is 83,000 megawatts as of lateNovember 2017, with nearly 1.2 percent of it being
covered by geothermal power plants.

1110

1200

2009

At a meeting with a group of journalists on December
2017, the JESDER vice chairman said that thegeothermal energy industry has grown by 60 percent to
70 percent annually since 2007. “Our installed power ingeothermal energy in 2007 was approximately 25
megawatts, but now we have reached 1053 megawatts,
and we will end the year with 1086 megawatts,” he said.
The official website of the Ministry of Energy andNatural Resources reports 860 MW of geothermal
capacity as of June 2017.

Sources:
https://www.dailysabah.com/energy/2017/12/19/geot
hermal-industry-to-receive-1b-investment-in-2018,
http://www.enerji.gov.tr/en-US/Pages/Geothermal,
http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/indonesia-vs-turkeythe-different-path-of-growing-a-geothermal-market/

20081053 MW of Installed Capacity, According to
JESDER - Mehmet Şişman, vice chairman of the
Association of Geothermal Power Plant Investors(JESDER), said the geothermal-electric capacity in the
country has risen to 1053 megawatts, and that Turkey is
now fourth among countries with the most geothermalenergy, following the U.S., the Philippines andIndonesia. He said that it targets to be the top in
geothermal energy in the very near future.

In related news, ThinkGeoEnergy published interestingdata showing the pace at geothermal has growth in thelast decade, passing “From a power generation capacityof 30 MW in 2008 to 1,100 MW in 2017…” (see thegraph below).

MW

Source: http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/18-mwturcas-kuyucak-geothermal-power-plant-startsoperation-in-aydin-turkey/

28

Increase in the geothermal installed capacity in Turkey
in the last decade (with data from ThinkGeoEnergy).
Project on Production of Algae from Hot Springs
Started in Yalova - A new project on the production of
spirulina from geothermal hot springs in Turkey, wasofficially opened in Yalova, on late November 2017.
The ‘Water and Spirulina (Microalgae) Production fromDifferent Geothermal Waters’ project has beensponsored by Yalova University Armutlu Vocational
School and supported by General Directorate ofAgricultural Researches and Politicals (TAGEM) of
Ministry of Food, Agriculture.
Yalova University Instructor Associated Betül Güroy
stated that the project was realized with the participationof researchers from Gaziantep University and Izmir
Kâtip Çelebi University and with the assistance ofArmutlu Municipality, Incirliova Municipality andAnkara Metropolitan Municipality in the direction of
Yalova University.
In his presentation, Güroy talked about Spirulina
cultivation conditions, benefits and usage areas. He said
that the purpose of this project to produce together
with geothermal water from natural renewable energy
sources and to lower the production cost. Güroy
stressed that it would be possible to increase the interestin domestic spirulina production, reduce its widespread
distribution and imports, and thus enable geothermal
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
water to be registered as an indigenous and natural foodenvironment for spirulina breeding.
Source: http://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/project-onproduction-of-algae-from-geothermal-hotspringsstarted-in-yalovaturkey/
Geothermal Resources Boost Production of
Turkish Tomato - Turkey’s largest tomato exporter
hopes to further exploit boiling subterraneangeothermal waters in order to become the world’s
leading exporter.
Agrobay, a company based in Dikili-Bergama in the
Aegean province of İzmir, currently produces 15,000
tons of tomatoes from greenhouses that utilize thermal
waters dotted across western Turkey.
The Dikili-Bergama region sits on one of hundreds ofgeothermal fields where underground waters can reachtemperatures of up to 287°C, according to the U.S.
Stanford University.
Hasanbey Farm, the Agrobay’s precedent, was originallyfounded as an organic garden in 2001, with several
greenhouses constructed on 15 acres (6 hectares) ofland. The company has extended to 173 acres (70hectares) today, making it the largest in Europe and thesecond largest in the world after Mexico,” said theAgrobay CEO Arzu Şentürk, adding that she aimed toincrease the total land area to 247 acres to boost
production and exports.
Agrobay currently exports 90 percent of its tomatoes to
Russia and the EU. Among the modern techniques usedon the farm, which employs around 1,000 staff, is a
closed irrigation system that allows Agrobay to savefertilizer, energy and water.

29
the whole community, bringing savings of up to AD$15
million (US$12 million) in energy consumption. Set toopen in December 2017, the Winton geothermal power
plant, designed by the consultancy Local Government
Infrastructure Services, will avoid changing thegeological or chemical composition of water supplies in
the region, by using hot water from existing bores,
which will be converted into a sustainable long-term
energy source.
It will be a welcome addition to the rural community,
which has been hit hard by drought, and will allow
funds to be directed towards other local priorities. The
move to sustainable energy was the vision of longserving Winton Chancellor and Mayor Graham “Butch’’Lenton, who died recently.
Council chief executive Alan Rayment says the power
plant will serve as a legacy for Lenton, who “always
looked outside the box for ways to help thecommunity”. “He realized that as a community, tosurvive and succeed, we need to keep looking for newopportunities like geothermal power and approach themwith rigor and process,’’ Rayment says.
Four other rural and remote councils will also embrace
the technology, with the Local Government Associationof Queensland borrowing AU$35 million (US$28
million) for plants in Quilpie, Thargomindah,
Normanton and Longreach. It is estimated that over 20
years, the plants will save the state government up to
AU$120 million (US$ 96 m) in power supply subsidies.

The used water is collected and returned tounderground geothermal reserves, cutting costs andhelping the environment.
“We save water and energy,” the Agrobay website
states. “We prevent the decrease of water over time in
the geothermal resource, which is our national heritage,
and this resource is transferred to future generations,” itadds.
Source: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/topturkish-tomato-exporter-looks-to-hot-springs-to-leadworld-market-124009

Oceania
Australia: Towns to Start to
Use Geothermal Fluids
Winton Shire Council is on the verge of opening
Australia’s largest geothermal energy plant, which will
power the town’s key council buildings and potentiallywww.geothermal-energy.org

The completed Winton generators are ready to be
shipped to the western Queensland site. Photoprovided by Jari Ihalainen.
Jari Ihalainen, CEO of Technical and Advisory Services,
said the Winton project is a small pilot plant but the aim
is to eventually provide 100 per cent of power to thecommunity. He said other geothermal plants are being
explored, and there are around 20 potential sites.
Thargomindah, approximately 1,000 kilometers west of
Brisbane, is at the end of the line on the electricity grid,
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
and residents say it causes frequent blackouts. In orderto tackle the power issue the local government has
decided to establish a geothermal power plant, and work
to flip the existing formula by pushing energy back into
the network from the west to the east.
“In layman’s terms what we’re looking at is a glorified
steam turbine with a solar load-following operation... so
we’re taking the water out of the ground which is theGreat Artesian Basin at 83 to 86 degrees Celsius, andthen running that through a power plant which converts
the heat into energy,” Bulloo Shire Council CEO
Edwina Marks said. Dr Marks said the project hasreached the concept design stage, and has attracted
some state government help with an AU$3.6 million
dollar (US$2.8 m) grant.
Sources: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nationalaffairs/state-politics/town-will-soon-start-to-run-onhot-water/newsstory/b3500646ae2c4496b92684cb01ba4a7c,
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-11-06/geothermalpower-in-western-queensland/9116698

New Zealand: Drilling to Start
for Ngawha Expansion
Earthworks preparing the geothermal well drilling site
have begun on farmland bought by Top Energy near
Ngawha Prison. Drilling itself is due to start early 2018
in charge of the company Iceland Drilling, which will
send a specialist team and be based in Northland for
one year from April 2018.
Top Energy, which already operates two geothermal
power plants totaling 25 megawatts (MW) at Ngawha,
east of Kaikohe, had been weighing to expand thecurrent capacity of its station, and utilize all the available
geothermal resources, depending on the New Zealandelectricity market conditions (see IGA News 109, p. 38).

30
Now the company has gained consent for a two-stage
expansion, which could eventually boost capacity toaround 81MW. The resource consents were granted forthe project in July 2017, and are valid for 35 years.
Providing a viable geothermal resource is found, thenext stage will be earthworks for the power station
itself. Stage 1 of the project, building a 28MW power
plant, was due to be completed in June 2021.
Top Energy chief executive Russell Shaw said thecompany had now passed the final hurdle in the way ofconstruction, which was getting major transaction
approval from the Top Energy Consumer Trust and
Top Energy Board.
A bank loan of NZ$175 million (US$119 million) had
been secured to pay for the project. It’ll constrain in the
short term the Top Energy’s ability to spend on othercapital projects, but it means ownership of the power
station. The other option would have been using equity
funding by selling off part of the existing power station
to pay for the new one.
It would be clear by September 2018 whether thegeothermal resource is viable. Once that is clear thecompany could finalize contracts for the transmission
connection, supplying the station, and the fluid
conduction system.
The Israeli company Ormat has the contract to design,build and supply the power station which willcommissioned in 2021. Ormat has a long history withthe operations at Ngawha supplying the original 10
megawatt power station, which was commissioned inJune 1998 and then expanded to 25 megawatts in 2008.
Mr. Shaw said it had been a “long and convoluted road”
to reach a point where the company was confident the
project would go ahead. The power station expansion
was one of the most significant projects ever undertakenin the New Zealand’s Far North, and could ultimately
secure the district’s energy independence, he said.
The Far North’s peak power demand is 70MW.
Currently the Far North, and Northland as a whole,
imports the bulk of its electricity, making it vulnerable
to outages and power price hikes.
Sources:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=
1&objectid=11942772,
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=
1&objectid=11957571

Other
Climate Change: Syria Joined
Paris Agreement, Isolating
U.S.
www.geothermal-energy.org

January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

31

Syria signed up to the Paris agreement at the COP23
climate summit in Bonn, leaving the U.S. as the only
country out of the global pact to prevent climate
catastrophe.
The declaration was made by a Syrian delegate at a
plenary session of the Bonn conference.
Since 2012, Syria has been embroiled in a bloody civil
war that has claimed 300,000 lives. Its greenhouse gas
emissions in 2011 added up to 88.19 million tons – or
0.19% of the world total – according to U.S. Aid.
Nicaragua, which gets half of its energy from renewablesources, had also been withholding its signature until
stronger measures were in place. But the small Central
American state relented in October 2017, leaving justtwo countries standing opposed to the climate pact.
And now there is one.
The U.S. will plough a lonely furrow at the Bonnsummit, as it prepares to leave the Paris agreement
within three years.
Kelly Love, a White House spokeswoman reportedlycommented: “As the president previously stated, theUnited States is withdrawing unless we can re-enter onterms that are more favorable for our country.”

Researchers say a combination of human activities andthe El Niño weather phenomenon drove CO2 to a levelnot seen in 800,000 years. Scientists say this risks
making global temperature targets largely unattainable.

Safa’ Al Jayoussi, executive director of Jordanian NGO
IndyACT, said the Syrian delegation announced theywould join during a meeting of the working group on
the Paris deal. She said the organization understood that
the Syrian government intended to both sign and ratify
the deal in the coming months.

The 2017 greenhouse gas bulletin produced by the
WMO is based on measurements taken in 51 countries.
Research stations dotted around the globe measureconcentrations of warming gases including carbon
dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. The figures
published by the WMO are what’s left in theatmosphere after significant amounts are absorbed by
the Earth’s ‘sinks’, which include the oceans and thebiosphere.

It was important, she said, that all 22 countries from theArab region would now be part of the deal.
Paula Caballero, the global director of the World
Resources Institute: “With Syria on board, now theentire world – save one country – is resolutely
committed to advancing climate action. This shouldmake the Trump administration reflect on their illadvised announcement about withdrawing from theParis Agreement.”
This article originally appeared on Climate Home News.

2016 saw average concentrations of CO2 hit 403.3 parts
per million, up from 400 ppm in 2015. “It is the largest
increase we have ever seen in the 30 years we have had
this network,” said Dr. Oksana Tarasova, chief of
WMO’s global atmosphere watch program. “The largest
increase was in the previous El Niño, in 1997-1998, andit was 2.7 ppm; and now it is 3.3 ppm. It is also 50%
higher than the average of the last 10 years.”

Climate Change: Record Surge
in Atmospheric CO2 in 2016

El Niño impacts the amount of carbon in theatmosphere by causing droughts that limit the uptake of
CO2 by plants and trees. Emissions from humansources have slowed down in the last couple of years
according to research, but according to Dr Tarasova, itis the cumulative total in the atmosphere that reallymatters as CO2 stays aloft and active for centuries.

Concentrations of CO2 in the Earth’s atmospheresurged to a record high in 2016, according to the World
Meteorological Organization (WMO). Last year’s
increase was 50% higher than the average of the past 10
years.

Over the past 70 years, says the report, the increase in
CO2 in the atmosphere is nearly 100 times larger than it
was at the end of the last ice age. Rapidly increasing
atmospheric levels of CO2 and other gases have thepotential, according to the study, to “initiate

Source:http://www.climatechangenews.com/2017/11/07/syria-join-paris-agreement-isolating-us/

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IGA News No. 110

32

unpredictable changes in the climate system... leading tosevere ecological and economic disruptions”.
According to experts, the last time the Earthexperienced a comparable concentration of CO2 wasthree to five million years ago, in the Middle Pliocene
Epoch. The climate then was 2-3°C warmer, and sea
levels were 10-20m higher due to the melting ofGreenland and the West Antarctic ice sheets.
Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/scienceenvironment-41778089

Climate Change: World’s
Heavy Dependence on Fossil
Fuels Projected to Continue
Global energy consumption will increase 28% between
2015 and 2040, with fossil fuels still providing the bulk,
77%, of the energy consumption by 2040, according to
a new report by the U.S. Department of Energy’s
Energy Information Administration (EIA).
The increased energy use will be matched by a 16%
increase in energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2)emissions over that same time period, with annual
emissions rising from 33.9 billion metric tons in 2015 to39.3 billion metric tons in 2040, according to EIA’s
report, “International Energy Outlook 2017.” That
energy usage, increasing from 575 quadrillion British
thermal units (Btus) (607 exajoules) per year in 2015 to
663 quadrillion Btus (700 exajoules) in 2040, assumes anannual 1.7% gross domestic product growth in the
Organization for Economic Co-operation andDevelopment (OECD) countries—including the UnitedStates and many European nations—and a 3.8% growthin non-OECD countries.
The new report, which provides long-term modeled
projections of energy production and consumption,states that energy consumption could be up to 40
quadrillion Btus (42 exajoules) higher or 29 quadrillion
Btus (31 exajoules) lower annually, depending on whatrates of economic growth actually occur and otherfactors.

The growth rate of energy-related CO2 emissions is
expected to ease, with an average 0.6% increase per year
between 2015 and 2040, according to the report. That’s
a sizeable drop from a 1.3% annual growth rate from1990 to 2015. EIA attributes that anticipated slowdown
to increases in energy efficiency and a gradual shift fromcoal to natural gas and renewable energy sources.
The report also forecasts a 2.8% annual increase inrenewable energy, including hydropower. “By 2040,
generation from renewable energy sources surpasses
generation from coal on a worldwide basis,” the reportstates.
EIA’s projections find renewables to be the most
rapidly growing energy source for electricity generation.
Still, the agency may be underestimating thecontributions from renewables, according to some
economists, including Rachel Cleetus, lead economist
and climate policy manager for the Union of Concerned
Scientists.
The report also forecasts a continued decrease in carbon
intensity, the amount of energy used per unit ofeconomic growth. EIA attributes that decrease to
China’s decline in coal use and to global growth in theuse of non-CO2-emitting sources of energy.
The industrial sector continues to account for thelargest share of energy consumption through 2040, with
a 0.7% annual increase in energy use between 2015 and2040. However, other sectors grow faster, with energy
use for the transportation and building sectors
increasing 1% and 1.1% annually, respectively.
The report projects that natural gas will be the world’s
fastest growing fossil fuel, increasing by 1.4% annually,
whereas petroleum and other liquids will increase 0.7%
and coal will see just a 0.1% increase, with declined
usage in China and OECD regions offset by growth inIndia and other non-OECD countries.
Source: https://eos.org/articles/worlds-heavydependence-on-fossil-fuels-projected-to-continue

Climate Change: Geothermal
Meeting at the COP23

GEOTHERMICS
International Journal of Geothermal Research and its
Applications
Write to JournalsCustomerServiceEMEA@elsevier.com if
you want a suscription at a special rate for IGA members.
Content of the latest issues:
http://www.elsevier.com/locate/geothermics
www.geothermal-energy.org

January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
On 16 November 2017, in the framework of theConference of the Parties 23 (COP23), held in Bonn,
Germany, the IRENA (International Renewable Energy
Agency) and the Global Geothermal Alliance (GGA)
convened a high-level roundtable on ‘Geothermal in the
Global Energy Transformation: What way forward?’
This COP23 side-event was held at the IRENA
Pavilion, and focused on the following subjects:- The role of geothermal energy in the achievement of
medium- and long-term de-carbonization goals;- Key challenges and possible solutions to unlock
geothermal investments;- The contribution of international cooperation under
the umbrella of the Global Geothermal- Alliance to accelerate the deployment of geothermalenergy across the globe.
Alexander Richter, president of the IGA, gave a clear
statement on the opportunities to mitigate climatechange by changing the fossil-fuel based district heating
system by geothermal.
The GGA initiative, launched during COP21 inDecember 2015, serves as a global platform for
improved dialogue, cooperation and coordinated action
among policy makers, industry, and other stakeholders.
The Alliance, composed of over 70 member countries
and partner institutions from across the globe, aims to
improve the environment for geothermal energy
development so to achieve a five-fold growth in the
global installed capacity for geothermal power
generation and a two-fold growth for geothermal
heating by 2030. The GGA is designed to provide
customized support to regions and countries withgeothermal potential, facilitate the exchange of insights
and experience among key stakeholders, and provide
technical assistance, advice, and capacity building.

33
Of course, most years are bad wildfire years now. Sevenof California’s 10 largest modern wildfires haveoccurred in the last 14 years. (The state began keeping
reliable records in 1932.) Given the scale of the blazes,
and their increasing regularity, it makes sense to ask:
Does global warming have anything to do with this?
The answer isn’t as clear-cut as it was this summer,
when drought- and heat-stoked fires raged across theRockies and Pacific Northwest. Instead, a mix of forces
are driving the fires in Southern California, and only
some of them have a clear connection to global
warming.
Here are some of the biggest factors that are shaping thewildfires in California—and how global warming is or
isn’t changing them:
The Santa Ana winds
Blame for the wildfires in Ventura and Los Angeles
counties lies first and foremost with the Santa Ana
winds, famously hot and desiccating gusts that blow
from the desert to the coast. The Santa Ana winds also
set the stage for the massive wildfires in Napa andSonoma earlier 2017.

Source: http://www.irena.org//media/Files/IRENA/Agency/Topics/ClimateChange/COP-23-IRENA-GGA-High-LevelRoundtable-Concept-Note-16-November-2017.pdf

Climate Change: Massive Fires
in U.S. Southern California
By December 2017, massive wildfires were raging acrossSouthern California, threatening thousands of homes
and cultural landmarks like the Getty Museum in Los
Angeles. It’s been an unusually bad year for the state—amid an unusually bad year for the West at large. Fires
in California have destroyed more than 6,000 structuresand incinerated hundreds of thousands of acres.
Montana and British Columbia both also had some of
their worst wildfire seasons ever.
www.geothermal-energy.org

Fire in Ventura County, California, seen from theMulti Spectral Imager (MSI) on the European Space
Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellite on December 5, 2017
(Photo taken from https://www.nasa.gov/imagefeature/fire-in-ventura-county-california).
Fires depend on two variables—an ignition source andfuel to burn—and the Santa Ana winds increase theavailability of both. But there are few signs—at least so
far—that the Santa Ana winds are becoming moreprevalent or that they’re systematically moving later inthe year. A 2006 study from researchers at the
University of California, Berkeley, and the Lawrence
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
Berkeley National Laboratory suggested that by the endof the century, Santa Ana winds may become morecommon. They may also form later in the year,
including in December.
La Niña

34
Source:https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/12/what-climate-change-did-and-didnt-have-to-do-withthe-socal-fires/547712/?utm_source=nl-atlanticweekly-120817&silverid=MzEwMTkxMTUxMzg3S0

There’s currently a weak La Niña in the tropical Pacific,
which means that global temperatures are cooler thanthey would be otherwise.

Financing: Lazard Analysis ofLevelized Costs of Energy

The same phenomenon is also keeping storms frommaking landfall in Southern California. Normally,
California’s wet season would have started by
November, but the rains haven’t appeared. Some of thisis characteristic of La Niña ... as the southern tier of theUnited States sees less precipitation during La Niña
winters.

Lazard is a one of the world’s preeminent financial
advisory and asset management firms, providing advice
on mergers and acquisitions, strategic matters,
restructuring and capital structure, capital raising andcorporate finance, as well as asset management services
to corporations, partnerships, institutions, governments
and individuals. Their more recent analysis (Levelized
Cost of Energy Analysis, LCOE 11.0) assumes 60%
debt at 8% interest rate and 40% equity at 12% cost forall (conventional and alternative) energy generation
technologies, and excludes integration (e.g., grid andconventional generation investment to overcome systemintermittency) costs for intermittent technologies.

It’s still unclear how climate change will affect the
Pacific’s yearly dance between El Niño, La Niña, and aneutral state. A 2015 study in Nature Climate Changefound that the Pacific Ocean may careen between
extreme states—from an intense El Niño to a monster
La Niña—by the end of the century, but more researchon the question still needs to be done.
A very cold U.S. East Coast
Even as the West Coast remains warm and dry, theEastern Seaboard is settling into some of its first cold
weather of the season. This pattern —a warm West, afrigid East— is known as the North American winterdipole.
It’s caused when the jet stream—which both ferries
storms into the continent and generally divides warm airfrom cold air—gets especially twisted across North
America. It rises far into the Canadian Northwest,
keeping most of the western United States warm anddry; then it cascades down across the middle of thecountry, bringing cold air well into the U.S. Southeast.
This phenomenon prolonged California’s drought
during the first part of this decade, keeping any kind ofstorm system offshore. It also brought the infamous“polar vortex” down into the continental United States.
Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University ofCalifornia, Los Angeles, argues that the ridge forms inpart because the West is warming up much faster thanthe East. If this is the case, then scientists might expect
to see the phenomenon fade in decades to come, as theEast Coast catches up to the West.
But a paper published last November in Nature
Communications takes another view. It finds that thedisappearance of sea ice over the Arctic Ocean couldchange the circulation of the Pacific Ocean, encouraging
the jet stream to veer north. In other words, climatechange will make something like the North American
winter dipole keep reappearing.
www.geothermal-energy.org

The main LCOE for several technologies are presented
in the following table:
Technology
Solar PV-Utility scale(1)- Crystalline- Thin film
Solar thermal with storage(2)Fuel Cell (distributed)
Microturbine (distributed)
Geothermal
Biomass directWind
Gas Peaking
IGCC(3)
Nuclear(4)Coal(5)
Gas combined cycle

LCOE (US$/MWh)
46 to 53
43 to 48
98 to 181
106 to 167
59 to 89
77 to 117
55 to 114
30 to 60
156 to 210
96 to 231
112 to 183
60 to 143
42 to 78

Notes: (1) Low value represents single-axis tracking
system. High value represents fixed-tilt design.
Assumes 30 MW system in a high insolation
jurisdiction (e.g., Southwest U.S.). Does not accountfor differences in heat coefficients withintechnologies, balance-of-system costs or otherpotential factors which may differ across select solar
technologies or more specific geographies.
(2) Low and high value represent a concentrating
solar tower with 10-hour storage capability. Low
value represents an illustrative concentrating solar
tower built in South Australia.
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

35(3) Does not include cost of transportation andstorage. Low and high values depict an illustrative
recent IGCC facility located in the U.S.
(4) Does not reflect decommissioning costs or
potential economic impact of federal loan guarantees
or other subsidies. Low and high values depict anillustrative nuclear plant using the AP1000 design.
(5) Reflects average of Northern Appalachian Upper
Ohio River Barge and Pittsburgh Seam Rail coal. Highvalue incorporates 90% carbon capture andcompression. Does not include cost of transportationand storage.
Source: https://www.lazard.com/perspective/levelizedcost-of-energy-2017

Science: Discovering
Geothermal Supercritical
Fluids by Seismic Exploration
The heat capacity of supercritical fluids (SCF), which
directly impacts on energy production, is much higher
than that of fluids at subcritical conditions.
Reconnaissance and location of intensively permeable
and productive horizons at depth is the present limit forthe development of SCF geothermal plants. A group of
researchers from some European centers anduniversities lead by Nicola Piana Agostinetti, used forthe first time, tele-seismic converted waves (i.e. receiver
function) for discovering those horizons in the crust.
Results from the analysis of tele-seismic data recorded
from broadband stations installed across the Larderello
field furnish a clear seismic evidence of SCF-bearing
horizons in a geothermal area. The transition from subcritical vapor to super-critical fluid coincides with anapproximately two order of magnitude decrease in fluid
compressibility (or, conversely, a two order ofmagnitude increase in fluid bulk modulus κ f). Thisvariation in compressibility strongly affects P-wave
seismic anisotropy related to the rocks hosting thevapor-filled fractures, and, thus, the transition to SCF
can be spotted out by means of the analysis of seismic
data.
The analysis of tele-seismic P-to-s converted waves (socalled Receiver Function) is a long-established passive
seismic tool for imaging Earth’s seismic structure fromthe upper-mantle to the shallow-crust (e.g. sedimentarybasin). Radial and Transverse RF are time-series of
converted waves, extracted from the P-wave coda
through the deconvolution of the Vertical component
from the Radial and Transverse components.
Transverse RF contains energy converted out of theradial plane, and is generally considered a proxy foranisotropy and/or dipping structures. The analysis ofwww.geothermal-energy.org(a) Comparison of the M-, n- and k- pulses with the“k-horizon”. For a precise comparison, we computethe time-delay between the P wave and S converted
wave (Tps) of the “k-horizon” from the Two-WayTime (TWT) data. A grey band indicate the minimum
and maximum Tps of the k-horizon along the profile
as computed using two end-member models. (b)Depth-distribution of seismicity along the profile,reported as distance from the k-horizon. Grey bars
show the +/−2std intervals for the depth of theseismic events relative to the k-horizon. Green
triangles and the green dashed line show thedifference in depth between the k-horizon and thebottom of the ultra-high anisotropic volume along the
profile. Anisotropic values along the profiles areshown as orange circles. An orange dashed line shows
the 32% anisotropic level given by vapor-bearing
microcracks19. (c) S-wave velocity model for eachpoint along the profile AB. Colors indicate S-wave
velocity. Texture indicates the area where highly
anisotropic materials are present. A grey areadelineated the minimum and maximum values for the
k-horizon at depth. Black crosses report the depth of
the seismic events occurred along the profile. (d)Schematic interpretation of our observations andmodeling for the Larderello geothermal field.
the time-delay and amplitude of such converted waves
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IGA News No. 110
can put constraints on the depth of the velocity
contrasts where the P-to-s conversions occurred.
Due to the capability of RF to map buried anisotropic
materials, the SCF-bearing horizon is seen as the 4kmdepth abrupt termination of a shallow, thick, ultra-high(>30%) anisotropic rock volume, in the center of theLarderello geothermal field, in Italy. The SCF-bearing
horizon develops within the granites of the geothermal
field, bounding at depth the vapor-filled heavilyfractured rock matrix that hosts the shallow steamdominated geothermal reservoirs. The sharp termination
at depth of the anisotropic behavior of granites,
coinciding with a 2 km-thick stripe of seismicity anddiffuse fracturing, points out the sudden change incompressibility of the fluid filling the fractures and is a
key-evidence of deep fluids that locally traversed thesupercritical conditions.
The presence of SCF and fracture permeability innominally ductile granitic rocks open new scenarios forthe understanding of magmatic systems and forgeothermal exploitation.
Source: The report (Discovering geothermal
supercritical fluids: a new frontier for seismic
exploration) appeared in Scientific Reports 7, Article
number: 14592 (2017) doi:10.1038/s41598-017-15118w, and can be freely downloaded from the source.
Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-01715118-w

36base helps the ice sheet to slide faster. We also identified
areas of low heat flux, which will help stabilizing the ice
sheet,” she told.
No-one has actually drilled through the kilometers of ice
in Antarctica to take the temperature of the bed.
Instead, the BAS team inferred the likely warmth ofrocks from their magnetism. This property can besensed by instruments flown across the surface of theice sheet by planes. Scientists know the temperature(580°C) at which hot minerals lose their magnetism, so
if they can gauge how close to the rock-ice interface thisoccurring then they have a means of estimating the heatflux.
The new map is said to represent an improvement on
previous efforts. It supports with far more detail theestablished idea that East and West Antarctica are very
different provinces. The East is a giant chunk of old,cold continental crust. The West, however, underwent
recent rifting in the Cretaceous (100 million years ago)that has pulled it apart.
“This rifting has thinned the crust and brought hot
material from deep down in the Earth, from hundredsof km down to within 100 km or so, or even maybe less,of the rock surface,” said co-author Tom Jordan. “Itconfirms what you would expect from the sparse,
exposed geology in West Antarctica where we havevolcanoes.”

Science: Map of Geothermal
Heat Flux in Antarctic
Researchers from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS)published a ‘geothermal heat flux’ map of the Antarctic,
which was published in last November at GeophysicalResearch Letters (Heat flux distribution of Antarctica
unveiled). This map contains key data required byscientists in order to model how the White Continent isgoing to react to climate change.
If the bedrock’s temperature is raised, it makes it easierfor the ice above to move. And if global warming isalready forcing change on the ice sheet, a higher flux
could accelerate matters.
“The heat coming from the Earth’s interior is importantto understand the overall conditions that control the
dynamics at the base of the ice sheet and hence the ice
flow,” explained Yasmina Martos, principal author of
the paper and currently affiliated to the NASA. “If thisheat flux is elevated, the ice base can melt and produce
water that acts as a sliding film. One result of our study
is that the heat flux is higher underneath West
Antarctica, where more ice is currently melting, thanunderneath East Antarctica. Even a little melting at the
www.geothermal-energy.org

Antarctic’s geothermal heat flux map (taken from thesource).
One of the great advances in polar science in the past
decade is the recognition that there is a really extensivehydrological network under the ice sheet. Rivers ofJanuary-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

37

water feed huge subglacial lakes that fill and burst theirbanks periodically. Satellites see the top of the ice sheet
heave and relax when this happens.

or Tambora. This is something far bigger: a rare, epic
volcanic phenomenon called a Large Igneous Provinceor ‘LIP.’Any projections of future change in Antarctica and its
contribution to sea level rise through the loss of ice haveto take this basement hydrology into account, and thevariations in geothermal heat flux are a critical part ofthe overall picture.

LIPs are floods of basalt lava on an unimaginable scale:the Siberian Traps LIP, which erupted at the endPermian extinction, covers an area the size of Europe.
It’s estimated that over 3 million cubic kilometers ofrock were vomited onto the planet’s surface. The endTriassic Central Atlantic Magmatic Province, stretchingfrom Canada to Brazil into Europe and West Africa,
was just as large. Others are similarly gigantic.

One research project that will see an immediate benefit
from the map’s data is the quest to drill the oldest ice on
the continent. Europe, America, China and others areseeking a location where they can collect a core offrozen material that contains a record of past climate
stretching back at least 1.5 million years. This
information about historic atmospheric conditions
including carbon dioxide levels can be deciphered fromtiny air bubbles trapped in the ice.
“It is very exciting to see the implications this new heat
map has for many communities, including new
generations of ice sheet and sea level models,” said Dr.
Martos. “I am very glad we are contributing animportant aspect at unprecedented detail. The Earth’s
interior has a lot to tell us in terms on how the ice
behaves.”
Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/scienceenvironment-41972297

Science: Large Igneous
Provinces (LIP) Could Be theCulprit of Mass
Extinctions

Four of the ‘Big Five’ extinctions are associated with
LIPs—too many to be mere coincidence —implyingthat large-scale volcanism is the main driver of mass
extinctions. Even the extinction of the dinosaurs at theend of the Cretaceous was simultaneous with the
Deccan Traps LIP in India. It’s possible that the
combination of the Chicxulub asteroid impact and the
Deccan eruptions, rather than just the impact, pushed
life over the edge. And recent evidence points to a LIP
trigger for the second phase of the end-Ordovician
extinction. If confirmed, that would link LIPs to all fiveof the Big Five extinctions.
For decades, the sheer size of LIPs and the wide error
margins in attempts to put dates on rock formations ledgeologists to suspect that LIPs erupted slowly overmillions of years; any associated extinctions could easily
be just coincidence. But in the last four years, improved
rock dating techniques have shrunk those error margins,revealing two important things: LIPs erupt in intense

Our planet Earth has extinguished large
portions of its inhabitants several times since
the dawn of animals. Such events are called‘mass extinctions,’ incidents in which many
species of animals and plants died out in ageological instant. They are so profound andhave such global reach that geological timeitself is sliced up into periods—Permian,
Triassic, Cretaceous—that are often defined bythese mass extinctions.
Debate over what caused those catastrophic
events includes diseases, galactic gamma rays,
dark matter, and even methane from microbes.
But since the 1970s, most scientists haveconsidered the likely root cause to be either
asteroid impacts, massive volcanic eruptions, ora combination of both.
Volcanism has coincided with most, if not all,mass extinctions. This isn’t the regular
Vesuvius/St. Helens/Hawaii style volcanism.
It’s not even super-volcanoes like Yellowstone
www.geothermal-energy.org

The many links between LIPs and mass extinctions. Larger mass
extinctions highlighted in red. (Redrawn and modified from Bond
& Grasby Palaeo3 2017, with Valenginian OAE from Svensen et al.,Geol Soc SP 2017 & Suordakh LIP from Gong et al., SREP 2017.)
Graph taken from the source.
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

38

pulses that are geologically fast (tens of thousands ofyears), and they often coincide precisely with mass
extinctions.

into the ground via an injection well to heat viscous oil
to the point at which it flows freely into a producing
well.

This is true for multiple LIP-extinction links. Precise
matches have been confirmed for the mid-Cambrian,the end-Triassic, the Toarcian, and others. And it isn’t
just a date match. Volcanic nickel and mercury havebeen found at several extinction-aged locations,
including for the Ordovician and Cretaceous events.

C-FER is promoting an EGS (Enhanced Geothermal
System) that would send cool water down an injector
well to become heated as it moves through a nonhydrocarbon-bearing rock formation. C-FER wants thegeothermal sector to begin using new SAGD
technologies to make capturing rock heat more efficientand improve the output of this type of power plant. To
prove whether the idea is feasible, C-FER is seeking
partners for a new joint industry project it recently
proposed.

Source:https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/11/when-willthe-earth-try-to-kill-usagain/?mbid=synd_digg&utm_source=digg&utm_medi
um=emailTechnology: Heavy-oil
Technology May Be a Perfect
Fit for Geothermal PowerOne prominent applied research group in Canada saysthat some of the technologies involved with heavy oil
have the potential to be used around the world.
Technologies involved in steam-assisted gravity drainage(SAGD) would be used primarily not to produce oil but
geothermal power.

The ultimate aim is to design a dual-well geothermal
plant capable of generating between 1MW and 5MW.
To reduce the risks associated with drilling an EGS well,
the good news is that there is no shortage of establishedoilfield solutions. Among those developed specificallyfor SAGD are high-temperature electrical submersible
pumps (ESPs), down hole, flow-control devices,
thermal-well casing connections, coiled tubing
instrumentation, and specialized cement for zonal
isolation.
Two other key technologies will be required to make theperfect geothermal well: horizontal drilling andmultistage hydraulic fracturing. Both are needed if
geothermal operators want to vastly increase a well’s
output by enlarging the area where injected water cancontact high-temperature rock.
Some geothermal wells have been drilled directionally,
but horizontal drilling is less common. And single-stage
hydraulic fracturing has been used too, but not themultistage techniques that create the 20 to 50 fracturing
clusters that define modern, shale-well designs.
To bring this well concept closer to reality, C-FER’s
joint-industry project first needs to complete the frontend engineering work and modeling to show that
SAGD technology can change the financial equation of
EGS—which historically has not been that good andthus explains its limited use. The next step is to findcompanies willing to drill pilot wells and test how wellthey work with technologies originally developed for theheavy-oil sector.
Source: https://www.spe.org/en/jpt/jpt-articledetail/?art=3225, https://www.cfertech.com/testingequipment/load-frames

Universal Testing Systems at C-FER’s facilities.
Photo by C-FER Technologies.
Brian Wagg, director of business development at
Edmonton (Canada) based C-FER Technologies,
explained how SAGD pushes large volumes of steam
www.geothermal-energy.org

Technology: New HARP
System Turns Heat into
Seriously Efficient Power
Organic Rankine cycle (ORC) systems have been used
for decades to generate power. The generators work
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IGA News No. 110
much like a steam engine; however, instead of water,
ORC systems use a fluid with a much lower boilingpoint than water. As a result, an ORC generator can use
low-grade heat (<150°C) to produce electricity.
Since their initial development, improvements in turbine
efficiencies and heat transfer materials have been
incorporated into ORC systems, improving theirperformance. But the technology remains largely underutilized, tapping only a fraction of the potential market
due to the upfront costs of the systems and relatively
high cost of the power produced.
Sponsored by the U.S. DOE’s GeothermalTechnologies Office, Pacific Northwest National
Laboratory (PNNL) has made a transformational
advance in the ORC technology and its use within thegeothermal industry. The PNNL-developed system
HARP (Harmonic Adsorption Recuperative Power)
uses a novel approach that eliminates the need for theevaporator, high pressure pump, and condenser in ORC
systems.
Conventional ORC systems work by transferring heat toa working fluid until it vaporizes at a constant pressure.
The high-pressure vapor is passed through a turbine, orother engine, that produces electricity. The vapor is thencondensed back to a liquid and recycled using an electric
powered pump. The HARP cycle scraps all thosecomponents and substitutes a patented multi-bed heatengine architecture and a specially formulated metalorganic framework (MOF) sorbent to drive the engine.

39
pores are packed to capacity with the working fluid.
When heat is subsequently applied to the MOF, theworking fluid vapor is released from the MOF pores,
and tremendous pressure is generated. This process
takes the place of evaporating the working fluid back toa vapor state. In the HARP system, the working fluid
remains in a vapor state the entire time; the only
difference is that the working fluid vapor attaches,
detaches, and reattaches into the MOF pores. A set offour heat exchangers packed with the MOF work intandem, adsorbing and desorbing the working fluid in a“harmonic” cycle that swings the pressure andtemperature every one to two minutes. The multi-bed
heat exchanger system thus becomes a thermal
compressor that powers the HARP system.
The elimination of the ancillary components in the
ORC allows the HARP system to generate 40 percent
more power from the same heat source. Even better isthe cost of electricity when using HARP: only
$0.05/kWh. Compare that to $0.15-0.20/kWh of aconventional ORC system. A 10 kW unit—big enoughto power about eight average U.S. households—can bepaired with many different sources of low grade heat,including waste heat from diesel generators, solar arrays,
produced water at oil and gas sites, or shallow depth
geothermal sites. Scaling up to 1 MW or even larger
systems is straightforward due to the simple design
PNNL staff developed for the thermal compressor
components, which is readily manufacturable at scale.
The PNNL Staff are putting the finishing touches on
the first HARP system that should be generating powerby 2018.
Source:http://energyenvironment.pnnl.gov/highlights/highlight.asp?id=2887

Technology: Ultra High
Temperature Filtration for
Extraction of Lithium from
Geothermal Brine

Researcher JJ Jenks operates HARP in the laboratory.
(Photo from the source)
In the HARP system, the working fluid vapor isadsorbed into the nanostructured pores of the MOF
sorbent, resulting in near liquid phase density. This
process takes the place of condensing the working fluid
vapor back to a liquid state. Instead, the MOF sorbent
www.geothermal-energy.org

The Canadian firm MGX Minerals Inc. reported in lateNovember 2017 that its engineering partner PurLucid
Treatment Solutions Inc. has developed hightemperature filtration for the purification of geothermalbrines and associated extraction of metals and minerals
including lithium.
Geothermal brines contain concentrated amounts ofmetals and dissolved salts. The presence of these
impurities produces scaling that severely reduces flow
and heat transfer of geothermal heat exchangers. This inturn negatively impacts the long-term operating
performance and in many cases eliminates the economic
viability of these systems. Geothermal brines contain
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110
lithium, magnesium and other minerals and metals
including gold.
MineralFeed
Pre Treatment Concentrate
Lithium
67
41
1,600
Boron
110
59
4
Calcium
23,00011,000370
Magnesium
2,800
<10
13
Potassium
4,500
2,800
12
Sodium
57,00043,00068
Sulphur
96
56
7
Lithium in the brine is upgraded from 67mg/l to 1600
mg/l Li in the filtration and pre-treatment phase of
the lithium extraction process. Source:
http://www.purlucid.com/index.php/news/item/10mgx-minerals-and-purlucid-report-advancement-oflithium-filtration-technology
After an initial period of research and development,
MGX and engineering partner PurLucid have developed
a proprietary, low energy design process that removes
scale-forming ions and dissolved salts while notrequiring a reduction in brine temperatures for filtration
to occur. This process utilizes PurLucid’s existing
patented and exclusively licensed replaceable membraneskin layers (RSL) filtration system, originally developedby David Bromley Engineering, which creates highly
charged pore spaces to force dissolved ions into
colloidal particles, simultaneously filtered down to 0.01
microns. The RSL is designed specifically to foul and isremoved and replaced in situ, resulting in 100% flux raterecovery. The ultrafiltration can then be followed by apatent-pending membrane distillation system in projects
where heat is available. The matrix is composed ofmaterials capable of operating at up to 700 degrees
Celsius.
This new technology also represents an environmentallyfriendly alternative for geothermal brine disposition,
which is largely limited to non-treated reinjection.
Similar to MGX’s existing wastewater treatment andrapid petro-lithium recovery units, MGX and PurLucidare conducting engineering studies to fabricate
treatment systems capable of being integrated into
existing geothermal infrastructure or incorporated as
standalone systems for mineral and metals extraction.
MGX currently owns a 34% interest in Purlucid and has
the right to acquire 100% through successive future
investments. MGX owns the global rights to theminerals extraction technology jointly developed.
Source:https://www.mgxminerals.com/investors/news/2017/293-mgx-minerals-announces-ultra-high-temperaturefiltration-for-extraction-of-lithium-from-geothermalbrine.html
www.geothermal-energy.org

40

IGA News
IGA News is published quarterly by the International
Geothermal Association. IGA News disseminates
timely information about geothermal activities
throughout the world. To this end, a group of
correspondents has agreed to supply news for eachissue. The core of this group consists of the IGA
Information Committee:
Peter Meier, Switzerland (Chairman)
Rolf Bracke, Germany
Varun Chandrasekhar, India
Albert Genter, France
Lúdvík S. Georgsson, Iceland
Luis C.A. Gutiérrez-Negrín, México
Susan F. Hodgson, USA
Herman Darnel Ibrahim, Indonesia
Liu Jirong, China
Kristín Vala Matthíasdóttir, Iceland
Georgina Izquierdo-Montalvo, Mexico
Marcelo J. Lippmann, USA
Diego Morata, Chile
Fernando S. Peñarroyo, Philippines
Horst Rüter, Germany
Ka Noel Salonga, Philippines
Marietta Sander, Germany
Surya Darma, Indonesia
Massimo Verdoya, Italy
Shigeto Yamada, Japan
Meseret T. Zemedkun, Ethiopía
The members of this group submit geothermal news
from their parts of the world, or their areas of
specialization. If you have some news, a report, or anarticle for IGA News, you can send it to any of theabove individuals, the Editor or directly to the IGA
Secretariat. Please help us to become essential
reading for anyone seeking the latest information on
geothermal worldwide.
While the editorial team makes every effort to ensure
accuracy, the opinions expressed in contributed
articles remain those of the authors and are notnecessarily those of the IGA. The editorial team does
not assume any liability for external content takenfrom public sources and websites, or endorse theproducts or services mentioned.
Send IGA News contributions to the editor(l.g.negrin@gmail.com) and/or:International Geothermal Association (IGA)
c/o Bochum University of Applied Sciences,E-mail: iga@hs-bochum.de
This issue of IGA News was edited by Luis C.A.
Gutiérrez-Negrín. Marit Brommer proofread thearticles. Distributed by the IGA Secretariat. Design
layout by François Vuataz.
January-March 2018

IGA News No. 110

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January-March 2018