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What? How? Where? $$$?
Using the waste fluids from hydrocarbon wells, you can now generate electricity for your pumping needs, with any additional electricity sold to utilities as renewable energy. A small binary electric turbine (250 kW+) is attached between the separation stage and reinjection well. This can be done on one well or multiple wells with temperatures over 225°F and 200+ gpm of combined fluid. Thus waste fluids become a valuable commodity! The amount of electricity is dependent on input and cooling temperatures and fluid flow rate. The chart shows estimates of electrical production (kW per gpm) versus the input fluid temperature. Gulf Coast wells are prime locations!
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Numerous Advantages for the Oil & Gas Industry: Top 10
1) Secondary geothermal energy recovery covers pumping needs and may generate extra energy to sell to utilities;
2) The technology is grounded in practices of the hydrocarbon industry;
3) The infrastructure already exists, i.e., roads, power lines, etc.;
4) Geothermal power production can use existing reservoirs or modify them after production ends to increase water;
5) Costs are lower than start-from-scratch geothermal development; estimated payouts possible in 3 - 5 years;
6) Power plants are scaleable with moveable turbines to meet the changing needs of an oil/gas field, plus as systems develop the technology continues to evolve;
7) Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) are an additional commodity that the Hydrocarbon Industry can use or sell . Its GREEN POWER!
8) Pricing of geothermal leases is lower than oil/gas leases;
9) The Geothermal Industry has 40+ years of experience in dealing with high temperature drops and geochemistry;
10) Government grants and loans may be available to develop new systems for demonstration sites.
Basic Economics
Current prices and tax incentives for electricity produced renewably
~$0.06/KWh wholesale
$0.019/KWh U.S. tax credit, depending on Congress passing bill
~$0.005/KWh REC
Thus for a binary turbine installed to produce 225 kWh/yr is approximately $165,000 or 500 kWh/y is approximately $368,000 in revenue.
Approximate estimated installation costs - $500,000 - $1,500,000 for a 250 to 500 kW plant.
Geothermal Power - A Hot Way to Produce Electricity ... Some Geothermal Facts
Geothermal energy provides more than 2700 megawatts (MW) of electric power to U.S. residents - comparable to 60 million barrels of oil per year, enough for 3.5 million homes. This is only a small fraction of the potential value of geothermal energy in the U.S.
Geothermal electricity is clean - no fossil fuels are burned. Geothermal electricity produced in the U.S. displaces the emission of 22 million tons of carbon dioxide a year!
Geothermal electricity is reliable - plants have average system availabilities of 95% or higher, compared to 60-70% for coal and nuclear plants.
Geothermal electricity is cost-effective - today's cost of geothermal electricity ranges from $0.05 to $0.08 per kilowatt-hour, and technology improvements are steadily lowering that range.
The average geothermal field uses 1-8 acres per megawatt (MW) versus 5-10 acres per MW for nuclear operations and 19 acres per MW for coal power plants.
Geothermal electricity is homegrown - it reduces our need to import oil, reduces the trade deficit, and adds jobs to the U.S. economy.
