WorldWide Drilling Resource

41 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® JUNE 2014 Kentucky’s Berea College Opens Geothermal Residence Hall Adapted from a PRWeb Press Release and Information Provided by Berea College One of the world’s greenest resi- dence hal ls has opened at Berea College in Berea, Kentucky. The newly constructed Deep Green Residence Hall is now open to students for the 2013 fall term. Dubbed “Deep Green” until a permanent name is chosen, the 42,000-square-foot, three-story facility with 66 rooms can house 120 students. A closed-loop geothermal system provides heating and cooling for the new building - reducing heating, venti- lation, and air conditioning costs by 50% (based on energy models) - in lieu of using existing plant utilities at the col lege. Each student room comes equipped with a heating/cooling/out- side air unit connected to this central unit via a four-piped system. Geothermal energy will also preheat water for all daily uses. Deep Green’s geothermal system uses the earth as a heat source and heat sink. Construction of this system began in January 2013 with crews drilling 50 geothermal wells, each 4.5 inches in diameter, 375 feet deep, and spaced 20 feet apart within the foot- print of the new parking lot directly east of the building. Located in the foothi l ls of the Appalachian Mountains, Berea College serves as a model for living more softly on the land by committing to con- struction projects that reduce energy consumption and preserve natural resources whi le also protecting the health of building occupants. Geothermal energy is only part of what makes the Deep Green Residence Hall a deeper shade of green. Mule teams harvested wood from the col- lege’s forest; the col lege’s Student Crafts program constructed furniture, and students designed and crafted the building’s iconic ceramic sundial in a traditional barn quilt pattern popular in Appalachia. The Berea sundial welcomes residents and visitors to this very special learning/living en- vironment. Manchester Geothermal Project is One Step Closer Adapted from Information by GT Energy GT Energy is working on a plan to build a new geothermal heat generation facility in Manchester, UK. GT Energy has raised the necessary funds to proceed with the next step of the project. The site will be located on Devonshire Street in Ardwick. “The successful completion of this funding round maintains the good prog- ress of the Devonshire Street geothermal heat project. We will be working with our contractor Erdwerk, which is highly expe- rienced in deep geothermal development in Germany. From here, we expect to move from planning permission to a posi- tion where we will be ready to break ground on the site in spring 2015,” said Padraig Hanly, managing director of GT Energy. The plan is to drill two wells approx- imately 9800 feet deep at which point they expect to hit one of the UK’s largest geothermal resources, the Cheshire Basin. From there, a network of pipes will take heat from the ground to the area’s homes and businesses. Not only will residents and firms benefit from cheaper energy, the overall project will create more than 100 new jobs in the city. Once complete, the site will be the largest commercial development of geothermal heating in the UK. GT Energy will be performing de- tailed geological evaluations to produce thermal models of the site before com- pleting its final design. GT Energy originally commissioned a study into the geothermal potential of the Cheshire Basin in Manchester, in 2008. The report showed the presence of a significant geothermal resource be- neath the city. Additionally, in 2012, a geothermal resource assessment of the UK con- ducted by SKM Consultants identified the Cheshire Basin as having a signifi- cant geothermal resource, equivalent to the heating and hot water consumption of approximately 7 million homes. The geothermal energy center will be located underground to minimize any visual impact. The project is expected to help the Manchester City Council achieve its re- newable energy targets. It will also help to meet key UK renewable energy tar- gets while generating economic growth and development at a local and com- munity level. Drilling is expected to take approximately six months to complete. Construction of the underground energy center will take an additional six months. Photo courtesy of gtenergy.net 3#-0 $ 0!5&-0$14)**% *-5#%,2%0 *--. .3+. +-$3*%1 !0% !4!)* !"*% &-0 "-2( 0%1)$%,2)!* !,$ #-++%0#)!* '0-3,$ *--. (%!2),' !,$ #--*),' 1712%+1 -+.!2)"*% 5)2( 2(%1% .3+.1 03,$&-1 ) *- *-5#%,2%01 #!, "% #-, &)'30%$ 5)2( -0 .3+. 3,)21 2- +!2#( $)&&%0%,2 *-!$ 0%/3)0%+%,21 0-$3#21 ),#*3$% *-5#%,2%01 %-2(%0+!* *-1%$ --. )22),'1 %.*!#%+%,2 3+.1 -1% )21 !,$ ##%11-0)%1 !0)!"*% .%%$ 3+.1 (-,% !6