Veranstaltungsprogramm

In the European Union, the objective of decarbonisation of the economy 2050 laid out by the European Green Deal leads to rapid and profound changes in the structure of the electricity market. Transitioning away from a centralised system dominated by suppliers with high operational costs, the electricity network in increasingly dominated by renewable sources which are defined by low marginal costs. Because of a sharp increase in variable generation, flexibility and dispatchability is now more valuable, though the old market structure is not fit to reward them.

New regulatory instruments and business models are therefore emerging to allow the deployment of renewable technologies that meet the new needs of the electricity market. Geothermal plants, whose potentially remains mostly untapped across most of Europe, can benefit from this evolving regulatory framework and the apparition of new business models.

Capacity Remuneration Mechanisms in the 2018 European electricity market regulation can become an opportunity for geothermal power plants if they are implemented to incentivize new investments. Power Purchase Agreement, an increasingly prevalent business models for private and public entities to secure a long term supply of renewable energy, value the stability provided by geothermal plant and can be driver in new investments. The provisions introduced as part of the European Green Deal and the Fit for 55% package will further accelerate the transition towards renewable sources and the need to progress towards sector coupling. The GEOSMART project is exploring the policy, regulatory and financing framework that can allow the deployment and marketability of flexibility resources from geothermal energy at scale.

This paper will present the finding of the GEOSMART project, looking in a first time at the electricity market structure in Europe and flexibility needs. The paper will also present how geothermal power plants can meet the arising needs of the electricity market, and what new models for pricing and tariffication within the markets are suited to build the business case of geothermal ORC plants in Europe. The paper will also explore how business models, notably Power Purchasing Agreement can complement the regulatory framework in accelerating the deployment of geothermal power plants as a flexibility and security of supply provider.

Im Rahmen eines deutsch-indonesisches Kooperationsprojekts unter Beteiligung des GFZ Potsdam (Deutschland), der Agentur für Technikfolgenabschätzung und -anwendung in Indonesien (BPPT) und PT Pertamina Geothermal Energy (Indonesien) wurde im Zeitraum 2015-2018 ein geothermisches Binärkraftwerk (ORC) für einen indonesischen Standort entwickelt, umgesetzt und in Betrieb genommen. Trotz des sehr hohen Anwendungspotentials der ORC-Technik in Indonesien wurde erst 2017 die erste kommerzielle Anlage in Betrieb genommen.

Durch die gute technische Anpassungsfähigkeit von Binäranlagen an unterschiedlichste Standortbedingungen, könnten diese an viel mehr Standorten eingesetzt werden und dazu beitragen, den Anteil geothermisch erzeugten Stroms in Indonesien deutlich zu erhöhen. Daraus ergaben sich die Ziele des Projekts, eine Demonstrationsanlage für ein bestehendes Geothermiefeld in Indonesien zu entwickeln, zu errichten, in Betrieb zu nehmen und Betriebserfahrungen zu gewinnen. Begleitet wurden diese Ziele durch Aktivitäten zur Aus- und Weiterbildung und zum Wissenstransfer.

Die Demonstrationsanlage wurde speziell an die örtlichen Gegebenheiten und Anforderungen angepasst und im September 2017 in Betrieb genommen. Die Anlage wurde unter Beteiligung von indonesischen und deutschen Firmen realisiert. Im Januar 2019 wurde die Demonstrationsanlage an einen indonesischen Partner übergeben. Seitdem konnten viele Betriebserfahrungen gesammelt werden, die bedeutend für nachfolgende Projekte sind. So ist die Betriebssicherheit und Zuverlässigkeit von geothermischen Stromerzeugungsanlagen, insbesondere in infrastrukturärmeren Gebieten ein wesentlicher Aspekt für den erfolgreichen Einsatz. Neben der Technik selbst können auch externe Ursachen die Zuverlässigkeit der Anlagen beeinflussen. Viele geothermisch genutzte Gebiete weisen eine erhöhte seismische Aktivität auf, die zum Ausfall von Geothermiekraftwerken führen können. Schäden könnten durch eine rechtzeitige Abschaltung der Anlage oder von Anlagenteilen verhindert werden. Diese Erfahrungen wurden auch am Demonstrationsstandort in Indonesien gewonnen und in Folge dessen wird aktuell ein unabhängiges Frühwarnsystem am Standort installiert, getestet und optimiert.

Dieser Beitrag wird die Entwicklung, Umsetzung und die Betriebserfahrungen der Demonstrationsanlage vorstellen sowie die Motivation, das Konzept und die Integration des Erdbebenfrühwarnsystems diskutieren.

The exploration of deep low-enthalpy geothermal systems in the Central Andes of Argentina is a key factor for the evaluation of direct use applications of the thermal water and power generation for the development of rural communities. The integrative 3D models obtained by combination of geophysical, geological and petrophysical data show the location and temperature of the water reservoir, enabling cost calculations and estimations of power output for power conversion plants. Moreover, these models significantly reduce the possibility of drilling in wrong areas, thus reducing risks for investors. In this study, we present the Pismanta geothermal system, which is located within the Iglesia Basin in the “Arid Diagonal” of South America. Results indicate a circulation of meteoric water from the Andes to the reservoir located 2500 m deep. The geometry of the system, physicochemical properties of the thermal water and δ2H/δ18O relation, suggest no interaction with magmatic bodies. A background heat flow of 60 mW/m2 raises the temperature of the reservoir to approximately 95 °C producing a mean thermal gradient of 30 °C/km. The preliminary evaluation of four binary cycle power plants resulted in a gross power generation of 30 to 280 kW. This electrical power is sufficient for two to fifteen small or medium-sized factories. The remaining thermal water can be used for applications such as drying of fruits, greenhouses, food processing and membrane distillation processes to solve arsenic problems in freshwater, among others.

The GECO aims to to significantly advance the capability to provide cleaner, cheaper, carbon-free geothermal energy in Europe and worldwide. The core of this project is the application of an innovative technology, developed and successfully demonstrated on a pilot plant scale in Iceland, that can limit the production of emissions from geothermal plants by condensing and re-injecting the gases or converting the emissions into commercial products. The goal of the GECO project is adopting this approach to become a standard to the geothermal power industry worldwide through its application to three new sites across Europe. A detailed and consistent monitoring program, geochemical analysis, and comprehensive modeling will allow characterization of the reactivity and consequences of fluid flow at our geologically diverse sites, enabling the creation of new and more accurate modeling tools to predict the reactions that occur in the subsurface in response to induced fluid flow. This approach lead to the long-term environmentally friendly storage of waste gases and to decrease considerably the cost of cleaning geothermal gas compared to standard industry solutions.

The European geothermal industry is quite fragmented because there are many national markets with different priorities, regulatory frameworks and market maturity for geothermal energy technologies. While the European geothermal energy market is progressing towards a greater degree of internationalisation and is indeed the second largest European renewable industry in value of exports, European companies in the geothermal industry, notably small and medium size enterprises, are not able to sufficiently build on the depth of the European sector to propose their services beyond Europe.

GEO ENERGY EUROPE assists European Small and Medium sized enterprises (SMEs) develop their activities on international markets. This is accomplished through international business development and capacity building activities tailored to the strengths of the member companies and the markets which they have an ambition to export to. The main target markets of this GEO ENERGY EUROPE meta cluster are Kenya, Chile, Canada and Ethiopia.

Diversifying the markets of European SMEs is key in order to ensure their financial robustness in the event of adverse economic conditions, in addition to supporting the expansion of employment in a niche scientific and engineering related discipline. While exporting geo-energy related expertise is the core business area of the GEO ENERGY EUROPE SMEs, cross sectoral business opportunities exist which further contribute the capacity for European SMEs to diversify their operations. This important when the geo-energy companies main business area is in the field of hydrocarbons which are in the process of being phased out of global energy supplies. The creation of new sustainable services for these companies in particular, which draw on the companies knowledge of the subsurface but applies it in sustainable way, such as the harnessing of geothermal energy, afford the chance of supporting jobs that would be in danger of being obsolete if an alternative market were not identified for their use.

This paper will aim at presenting the main recommendations issued from the work of the GEO-ENERGY EUROPE project to facilitate the development of international projects for European geothermal energy companies. The paper will notably look at the strength of the European geothermal industry in the global export market, and provide policy recommendations to facilitate internationalisation, as well as best practices for companies looking to explore international markets.