WorldWide Drilling Resource

45 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® AUGUST 2013 Australian Geothermal Drilling Project Receives Grant Adapted from Press Releases by Petratherm, Ltd. and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency Petratherm recently announced the Paralana Project, located roughly 370 miles north of Adelaide in SouthAustralia, has been awarded a $13 million grant by theAustralian Renewable EnergyAgency (ARENA). The grant, awarded under ARENA’s Emerging Renewables Program (ERP), will assist with the next stage of develop- ment, including the drilling and stimulation of the Paralana 3 well - a production well in the reservoir around the existing Paralana 2 well. Together, the wells will provide a circulation loop through hot rocks, thereby enabling commercial pro- duction of geothermal power to begin. The Paralana project is one of two advanced engineered geothermal sys- tems projects aim- ing for large-scale power generation in Australia. “The next step for Petratherm is to prove a commer- cialization pathway by providing viable o f f - g r i d e n e r g y supply where there is enough demand. If this is successful, ARENA sees a great opportunity for Paralana to impact the energy mix in t he h i gh ene r gy growth market of South Austral ia,” ARENA CEO Ivor Frischkneckt stat- ed. P e t r a t h e r m Managing Director Terry Kallis says the funding announce- ment is a shot in t he a rm f o r t he company and pro- vides a major boost to the project. “We are absolutely del ighted with the grant and also buoyed by the Federal Government’s endorsement of the Paralana project which has enormous potential as part of Australia’s clean energy future,” he said. “We have budgeted $26 million for the next stage of works at Paralana, so this $13 million grant will effectively finance half the project costs. It’s a massive boost for the entire project and an important vote of confidence by the Government in Petratherm’s capa- bilities and the geothermal energy sec- tor in general.” The ERP grant was provided on a matching funding basis and adjusts two existing grants. They agreed to relinquish $2.8 million remaining from its $7 million geothermal drilling program grant, and the company’s $62.8 million renewable energy demonstration program grant for a 30-megawatt project has been reduced to $24.5 million for a 7-megawatt project. Geothermal Drilling and Logging Begins in the Netherlands Adapted from Information by Iceland GeoSurvey Iceland GeoSurvey (ÍSOR) has signed a contract with German drilling company Daldrup & Söhne AG to carry out logging in two boreholes being drilled into a low-temperature geothermal area at Heemsmkerk, Netherlands. Drilling will extend to more than 9800 feet. ÍSOR’s geothermal logging services help provide a better understanding of subsurface conditions including: ’ Geological subsurface structures of the geothermal field ’ Extent and scale of the geother- mal reservoirs ’ Reservoir monitoring and produc- tion forecasting ’ Chemical, physical, and structural properties of reservoir rocks ’ Chemical and physical properties of reservoir fluids ’ Chemical and physical processes within geothermal systems ÍSOR has three specially equipped trucks for real-time logging in open and cased geothermal wells, and three addi- tional units with memory tools for slick-line logging. ÍSOR is sending one of its log- ging trucks to the Netherlands for this project; two of ÍSOR’s experts will oversee the logging. Although a little over a year ago, a logging truck and transportable laborato- ry were transported to Dominica, this is the first time ÍSOR has sent a logging truck to Europe. The truck sent to Europe is equipped to log down to about 16,000 feet. Hörður Halldórsson, department manager at ÍSOR is optimistic more types of logging may follow, because if this project is a success, Daldrup & SöhneAG are likely to drill more boreholes in the Netherlands.