Dissemination Department - November 3th 2009
The Technological Institute for Renewable Energies (ITER) signed a collaboration agreement with the Spanish subsidiary of the Australian Company PETRATHERM Limited LTD for the exploration, research and development of geothermic projects in the Canary Islands. Since then, this joint initiative has been a financial investment of 886.687 €, which have been contributed by PETRATHERM (60,02%), ITER (35,30%), the General Direction of Energy of the regional Ministry of Employment, Industry and Commerce of the Canary Islands Government (1,34%) and others (3,35%).
The tasks carried out until now has been focused on the islands of Tenerife, with the 89.93% of the whole investment realized; Gran Canaria, with the 7.41%; La Palma and Lanzarote, with 1,33% each one.
These tasks have primarily consisted of the collection and analysis of already existing information relevant for the search of geothermic resources in the Canary Islands subsoil, the selection and definition of the mining grids where the geothermal exploration is done, the development of geochemical volatile gases in the surface environment of the selected areas, and the materialization of the geophysical prospection, basically of magnetotelluric, to evaluate the potential geothermal resources existing in the subsoil.
This initiative for the search of a potential energy resource in the subsoil of the Canary Islands has been mainly promoted by the private sector, which is responsible of having invested 63.37% of the total investment since late 2007. PETRATHERM Limited LTD is one of the leading companies in the geothermal industry in Australia, with researching projects in advanced stage, and is represented in all bodies and institutions that have been working for the development of geothermal energy in this country during the last four years. Petratherm Limited LTD has carried out an active policy of acquiring mining rights in Spain in recent years, having processed more than 2,500 km2 in research and exploration licences.
Specifically in the Canary Islands, the mining lands registered rises to 800 km2 in exploration licences, 544 km2 of them are located in Tenerife and 277 km2 in Gran Canaria. During this period of time, and with the aim of strengthening the research activities needed to evaluate the geothermal potential of the islands, ITER has submitted three project proposals for the development of the geothermal exploration in the Canary Islands; two of them, submitted together with PETRATHERM through public calls of the government for research projects, and the third referred to a public call for research projects of the Canary Island’s Agency of Research, Innovation and Information society (ACIISI-GOBCAN).
None of these proposals have been approved and supported by the government so far, but ITER together with PETRATHERM has recently submitted a new to the Science and Innovation Ministry (MICINN) call 2009 for singular and strategic projects. The aim is to get enough public funds, so it will be possible to develop the needed activities for the analysis of geothermal energy as an own energy resource in the Canary Islands.
The main restriction of geothermal energy over other renewable energies is the investment configuration that requires significant expenses in the initial research phase which is the high risk phase. In consideration of production and maintenance costs per generated megawatt are among of the lowest, therefore the importance of the development of mechanisms to promote the mitigation of this risk in the early stages.
Spain has a similar, or even higher geothermal potential in comparison with its neighbours, but it is less developed than Germany’s or France’s one. The difference lies in the promotion of assistances and basic researches that these countries have being doing during the last years, including measures that mitigate the risk of the initial investment or the development of retributive policies which favours the development of the sector.
The geothermal energy is obtained by capturing the heat stored beneath the terrestrial surface by drilling for hot aquifers - hydrothermal systems - or the injection of cold water into a hot and dried rock. The produced water or steam is drawn to the surface for using it in thermal applications or for producing electricity in the case of high temperatures.
The studies from the 70’s and 80’s, realized within the National Energy Plan by the Geological and Miner Institute of Spain, considered the Canary Islands as the place with the highest potential for the development of the geothermal energy in Spain. The geothermal potential exists in the islands, and one of the evidences of this potential is the existence of an underground hydrothermal system in the subsoil of Tenerife with a temperature of 275°C. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate whether it is possible to exploit this geothermal resource with the scientific and technological development reached in the past years.
The geothermal energy can contribute significantly to the so-called “The Renewable Mix” providing stability to the grid, because it is a manageable energy source which emits 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
The European Union is betting on its fight against the climate change, identifying the objectives and specific policies to remedy one of the biggest problems facing the twenty-first century society. Among these measures, the increase of renewable energy plays a fundamental role, and geothermal energy, appears as one of the renewable energies with a great potential of global growth for the next decades.