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Big oil rises to Dutch geothermal challenge
https://www.petroleum-economist.com/articles/politics-economics/europe-eurasia/2019/big-oil-rises-to-dutch-geothermal-challengeBig oil rises to Dutch geothermal challenge
The quest for clean energy to fill the gap left by declining gas production could be tailor-made for oil firms
12 March 2019
Geothermal energy has been a niche heating and power source across Europe for decades. But the need to displace fossil fuels and clean up the energy sector has intensified the spotlight on it. A prime example is the Netherlands, where the planned closure of the Groningen gas field has sparked a search for alternative ways to heat buildings and the country's famous greenhouses.
Geothermal is already a popular source of cheap, clean heating for the Netherlands' large tomato and flower-growing industry, pumping hot water from up to 4km (2.5 miles) below ground to serve greenhouses via heat networks. But now geothermal is starting to go mainstream, echoing increasing interest in the sector in neighbouring France and Germany.
Firms such as Shell, France's Engie and Canadian independent Vermilion Energy have submitted plans for large geothermal heat projects in the Netherlands in recent months. Official data shows more than 30 applications were received for geothermal permits across 2017 and 2018, compared to fewer than 10 in total over the previous seven years.
Growth has been fuelled by government support for an industry that ticks clean energy boxes through subsidies and the provision of risk insurance for geothermal projects. The government wants to see 135 petajoules (37.5TWh) of annual geothermal heat supply by 2050, a vast increase on current production levels of around 3PJ. In order to achieve this, the industry estimates that, by that date, around 700 geothermal wells have to be sunk. This would require a drilling rate of around 26 new wells every year-currently, the Netherlands has just 17 of these wells, known as doublets, which allow hot water to leave and cooled water to return to the aquifer.
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The quest for clean energy to fill the gap left by declining gas production could be tailor-made for oil firms
12 March 2019
Geothermal energy has been a niche heating and power source across Europe for decades. But the need to displace fossil fuels and clean up the energy sector has intensified the spotlight on it. A prime example is the Netherlands, where the planned closure of the Groningen gas field has sparked a search for alternative ways to heat buildings and the country's famous greenhouses.
Geothermal is already a popular source of cheap, clean heating for the Netherlands' large tomato and flower-growing industry, pumping hot water from up to 4km (2.5 miles) below ground to serve greenhouses via heat networks. But now geothermal is starting to go mainstream, echoing increasing interest in the sector in neighbouring France and Germany.
Firms such as Shell, France's Engie and Canadian independent Vermilion Energy have submitted plans for large geothermal heat projects in the Netherlands in recent months. Official data shows more than 30 applications were received for geothermal permits across 2017 and 2018, compared to fewer than 10 in total over the previous seven years.
Growth has been fuelled by government support for an industry that ticks clean energy boxes through subsidies and the provision of risk insurance for geothermal projects. The government wants to see 135 petajoules (37.5TWh) of annual geothermal heat supply by 2050, a vast increase on current production levels of around 3PJ. In order to achieve this, the industry estimates that, by that date, around 700 geothermal wells have to be sunk. This would require a drilling rate of around 26 new wells every year-currently, the Netherlands has just 17 of these wells, known as doublets, which allow hot water to leave and cooled water to return to the aquifer.
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