“The Norwegian oil and gas industry is well positioned to take part in the growing market for geothermal energy. It represents new business opportunities especially for companies with drilling competence and other related technology. We encourage NODE companies to participate in a geothermal workshop in Kristiansand on June 8th,” says Marit Dolmen, RD&I Manager at GCE NODE.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that the upper kilometers of the Earth’s crust holds heat energy that is 200 million times greater than the Earth’s annual energy consumption. The heat increases with increasing depth. In Norway the temperature typically rises by 17 to 20 degrees for every kilometer.
Geothermal energy is harvested when cold water is pumped into an injection well, and returned as heated water in a producing well. In deep wells, the water will surface in the form of steam that can be used in industrial processes or to generate power in steam turbines.
A 5-kilometer deep well is believed to have a lifecycle of around 30 years. By that time the ground will have cooled down. After another 20 to 30 years, the build-up of heat will be sufficient for the well to reopen.
For geothermal energy to be profitable, it is necessary to drill at a lower cost than offshore, and to penetrate rock formations that are harder than the ones found on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.
Speakers at the workshop include Statoil (GeoMagma project) and two Islandic companies North Tech Energy and ISOR, in addition to Qmatec, Otechos, SINTEF and Rock Energy.
The seminar is held in cooperation between GCE NODE and SINTEF.
