AltaRock, Davenport Newberry to Demonstrate EGS in Oregon
Geothermal developer AltaRock Energy and Davenport Newberry, a company specializing in the development and management of geothermal opportunities, announced plans this week to conduct a demonstration of enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) technology at a site located near Bend, Ore.
The purpose of this project, part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Geothermal Technology Program, is to create geothermal reservoirs and extract heat from the earth in locations where high temperatures can be reached by conventional drilling techniques, AltaRock said in a statement. The demonstration will take place on an existing federal lease located outside the Newberry National Volcanic Monument, about 30 miles south of Bend.
Leases located outside the monument boundary were designated for geothermal use by a committee that included representatives of the community, environmental groups, government, and the geothermal industry. This committee helped draft the legislation that was adopted in the congressional process that established the Newberry National Volcanic Monument and adjacent geothermal leases.
Funded by a recent $21.45 million American Reinvestment and Recovery Act grant through the DOE and $22.36 million from the AltaRock-Davenport partnership, the project will also benefit from the research efforts of faculty and students at the University of Oregon, University of Utah, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Texas A&M, Temple University, and scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey.
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, DOE, and Oregon state officials will review all plans and issue applicable permits only when satisfied that the Newberry project complies with strict standards. These public-sector entities will also continue to monitor all aspects of the project as it progresses.
"The Newberry project is subject to strict regulatory agency approval and will meet the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act," said Will Osborn, project manager for AltaRock Energy.
The DOE describes EGS as extracting heat from the earth by creating a subsurface fracture system and circulating water through these fractures using deep well bores. Creating an EGS reservoir requires improving the natural permeability of rock. Rock is permeable due to the presence of minute fractures or pore spaces. Water pumped into deep injection wells is heated by contact with the rock and returns to the surface through production wells, similar to naturally occurring geothermal systems.
A 2007 study led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology estimated that with suitable investments and improvements to existing technology, EGS could supply up to 10% of America’s electricity needs within 50 years at prices competitive with fossil fuel–fired generation. The technology has yet to be commercially proven in the U.S., however, because projects are technically complex.
AltaRock’s EGS demonstration at The Geysers in Northern California was suspended last September after a drilled borehole collapsed as a result of unstable geologies. Seismic activity at a Swiss EGS project trial resulted in $9 million in damages.
Sources: AltaRock, POWERnews