Transcript Document 7391226

GEOTHERMAL DEVELOPMENT IN
UTAH – 2006
Utah Geological Survey
Salt Lake City, Utah
(801) 537-3300
http://geology.utah.gov/
INTRODUCTION
• Interest in geothermal development has increased due to the
overall rise in energy prices
• New realization of the economic benefits of renewable energy
• Federal Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT) created new
incentives for development
• Production tax credit for geothermal-generated electricity
placed on-line before January 1, 2008
• New rules for federal leasing for both geothermal electrical
generation and direct-use – (Kermit Witherbee, DOI/BLM)
ACTIVITY
SUMMARY
• Cove Fort-Sulphurdale
• Roosevelt Hot Springs
• Newcastle
• Crystal-Bluffdale
• Warm Springs Fault
• Lower Bear River
Cove Fort-Sulphurdale Geothermal Power Project
• Dry steam at about 300°F in shallow (600 – 1300 ft)
fractured Paleozoic sandstone reservoir. Liquiddominated system at depths > 2,000 ft.
• UMPA and Provo City operated four binary-cycle
power units (3 MW), a turbine generator (2 MW), and
a condensing turbine (8.5 MW). Production since mid1980s.
• One well completed into the deeper (liquid-dominated)
system (> 2000 ft?) supplied geothermal fluid for the
condensing turbine.
Cove Fort-Sulphurdale Geothermal Power Project
• Amp Resources purchased the UMPA-Provo power facility
in 2003, shut down the plant in preparation for dismantling
it and building a new plant.
• December 2005, Amp announced signing a 20-year power
purchase agreement with PacifiCorp for the output of a
new geothermal electric generating station.
• Generating capacity from 37 to 42 MW using Kalina-cycle
technology
• Present status - ??
PacifiCorp Blundell Expansion – Roosevelt Hot
Springs KGRA
• Roosevelt Hot Springs geothermal area situated on
the west flank of the Mineral Range in Beaver
County.
• 26 MW (gross) Blundell plant operating since
1984.
• Steam separated from hot brine at temperatures
over 500°F from four production wells (4,000 –
7,000 ft).
• Hot brine returned to reservoir at temperatures ~
350°F through three injection wells.
PacifiCorp Blundell Expansion – Roosevelt Hot
Springs KGRA (continued)
• April 11, 2006 - PacifiCorp announced planned, 11 MW
expansion using a “bottoming cycle.”
• Contracted ($11.5 million) Ormat Nevada, Inc. to provide an
11-MW OEC unit to extract heat from hot brine return fluid.
• Delivery of the OEC expected in second quarter of 2007.
• Contracted ($19 million) CEntry Constructors & Engineers
for engineering and construction of the project.
• Expected power production on November 1, 2007.
• Rene Andrews, PacifiCorp.
Newcastle Geothermal Greenhouses
• Source of geothermal fluid probably zone of up-flow associated
with a Quaternary-age fault less than a mile to the southeast
from the main production area.
• Geothermal fluid spills into the Escalante Valley aquifer, forming
a broad outflow plume with temperatures about 185°F – 220°F.
• UGS has noted temperature changes to the thermal outflow
plume since main production began in the early 1990s.
• Temperature changes may result from geothermal production,
regional drought, ground-water withdrawals from the main
Escalante Valley aquifer, or combination of factors.
Newcastle Geothermal Greenhouses (cont.)
• Milgro Nurseries established facility in 1993 with
construction of a 500,000-ft2 greenhouse complex devoted
mostly to the production of potted chrysanthemums.
• Subsequent additions brought Milgro's total space to 1.1
million ft2 (25 ac.). Nation's largest producer of
chrysanthemums.
Newcastle Geothermal Greenhouses (cont.)
• Castle Valley Greenhouses recently completed a 49,500-ft2
addition of greenhouse space for a total of 90,000 ft2
• Castle Valley GH produce hydroponic tomatoes for a Utah
supermarket chain.
• Plan a similar addition of 49,500-ft2 in near future.
Utah State Prison Geothermal Heating Project –
Bluffdale
• Crystal (Bluffdale) Hot Springs geothermal area south end
of the Salt Lake Valley near the Utah State Prison.
• Surface spring temperatures approach 136°F.
• Subsurface temperatures of 185°F+ reported in production
wells 600 to 1000 ft in depth.
• One well owned by the Utah Department of Corrections
dedicated to the prison heating system.
• Area has undergone geothermal development since early
1980s – Prison geothermal heating system (shut down after
two seasons) & nearby greenhouses.
Utah State Prison Geothermal Heating Project –
Bluffdale (cont.)
• Johnson Controls, Inc. (ESCO) entered a long-term
agreement in 2003 with UDC to provide heat to the minimumsecurity wing.
• Geothermal heating system came back on line in January
2004 after shut down for most of the past 20 years, due to
calcite scaling.
• Phase I - Johnson re-engineered the heating system to
eliminate the scaling and provide space and water heating to
about 40,000 ft2 of the complex.
• Phase II - completed in the fall of 2005, heating system
currently supplies heat and domestic hot water for 332,665 ft2.
Crystal Hot Springs, Bluffdale Flowers
Greenhouse Expansion
• Bluffdale Flowers (Utah Roses) operates a 250,000-ft2 (~6 ac)
geothermal-heated greenhouse complex producing 40
varieties of cut roses and other flowers.
• Facility has operated successfully since 1981.
• Two wells (600 and 900 ft) supply geothermal water at 185°F
to a surface heat exchanger.
• Distribution system is old, inefficient, and contributes to
production problems during cold periods.
Crystal Hot Springs, Bluffdale Flowers
Greenhouse Expansion (cont.)
• Bluffdale Flowers plans an expansion of an additional
100,000 ft2 of greenhouse space if the geothermal system can
be effectively upgraded and extended into the new facility.
• Feasibility study requested through GPW for retrofitting the
existing greenhouse complex with a new geothermal heat
distribution system to determine appropriate upgrades
without increasing geothermal flow from production wells
• Not funded in 2006 cycle.
• WSSC
UTA WARM SPRINGS SERVICE
CENTER
Utah Transit Authority (UTA), a
quasi-gov’t agency providing mass
transportation for the Wasatch
Front. UTA acquired the Warm
Springs Service Center (WSSC) in
2003 for commuter train
maintenance. WSSC is part of a
planned commuter rail system that
will service a 100+ mile long corridor
along the Wasatch Front.
FRONTRUNNER
UTA Warm Springs Service Center - Proposed
Geothermal Space Heating
• Warm Springs Fault geothermal area lies at base of Wasatch Range
just north of downtown SLC, and ¼ mile east of UTA’s WSSC.
• Temperatures range to 131°F at Beck’s Hot Spring.
• UGWG recommended a GPW-funded study to determine feasibility
of geothermal space heating at the WSSC (120,000 ft2).
• OIT Geo-Heat Center completed study in December 2006, analyzing
two scenarios for development that yield payout periods from 10 to
12 years, and ROI from 6 to 11% on capital costs of $192K to
$384K.
• UTA currently assessing options w/respect to available budget.
Warm Springs Fault
Geothermal Area
Salt Lake City, Utah
Warm Springs Fault Geothermal Area
Wasatch Hot Spring (~ 108°F)
UTA Warm Springs Service Center
Weber to SLC Segment To Open Late
2008
Lower Bear
River Area
Lower Bear River Area
• Renaissance – A Geothermal Resource in Northern Utah –
Austin, C.F., R. Austin, and M.C. Erskine (2006, GRC
Transactions, v. 30, p. 853-857)
• Proposed geothermal power project near Honeyville, Box
Elder County
• Explored in 1974 by Geothermal Kinetics and UP&L -Davis #1 Well, 11,005 ft, 272°F+
• Reported flow test at 3500 gpm at 286°F
• TDS ~ 85,000 ppm
Intermountain West Geothermal Consortium
• EPACT authorized establishment of the Intermountain West
Geothermal Consortium (IWGC)
• Designated management of IWGC to Boise State University
• Members include U of I, INL, EGI, DRI, and OIT
• IWGC’s mission is to support national energy security through
research and development of underutilized geothermal
resources in the Intermountain region
• Focus is to incorporate emerging geoscience techniques with
new data, and apply these studies to high-potential regions in
the Intermountain West
IWGC Utah Focus Area
• Investigation of the large geothermal “quadrangle” in central
and southwest Utah: Includes Cove Fort-Sulphurdale KGRA
on the east, Roosevelt Hot Springs KGRA on the west,
Meadow-Hatton area on the north, and the Thermo Hot
Springs KGRA on the south -- 50 mi long and 30 mi wide.
• Goal: Expand known geothermal resources, provide critical
information on resource permeability to reduce the risk of
drilling dry holes, and enable future exploitation at sites not
currently under development.
• Investigations: Directed at improved understanding of
structural and stratigraphic relationships and their influence
on fluid movement at depth.
IWGC Utah Focus Area - Methods
• Satellite imagery - determine relationships among
geothermal activity, fluid movement, and fracture
distributions.
• Numerical studies - test conceptual models of regional-scale
fluid and heat flow.
• Geophysical investigations - 3-D imaging, with new MT and
other EM surveying to establish fluid and alteration
pathways through their influence on electrical resistivity.
• Isotopic Studies - tritium and carbon-14 to provide
information on subsurface fluid temperatures, sources, ages,
and movement.
GEOPOWERING THE WEST
• Utah Geothermal Working Group has met five times
and co-sponsored three workshops
– Early focus on Federal/State regulatory processes and
incentives for developers
– More recent focus on active/proposed projects
• Workshops
– January 2004 - “Exploring Utah Geothermal Opportunities:
Development and Financing”
– August 2005 – “Geothermal Power Generation”
– March 2006 – “Ground-Source Heat Pump and Direct-Use
Workshop”
GEOPOWERING THE WEST
(continued)
• Utah Geothermal Website
– UGS continues to maintain and develop a website for
geothermal resource information in Utah
– Site can be accessed at
http://geology.utah.gov/emp/geothermal/
– Includes regulatory guides, bibliographies, working
group meeting summaries and presentations, and links
to other relevant Internet sites