Geothermal Alberta a real possibility, says expert

By Tim Kalinowski on September 28, 2017.

tkalinowski@medicinehatnews.com @MHNTimKal

Harnessing the natural heat of the earth’s crust to meet all the heat and energy needs of surface dwellers. It sounds like something out of a science fiction movie, but thanks to advances in geothermal technology it could one day become a reality right here in Alberta, says geothermal specialist Liz Lappin, founder of Castle Rock Consulting and exploration manager for E3 Metals Corp.

“In Alberta we have a really unique opportunity,” states Lappin. “For these deeper resources we have a talented and skilled workforce which understands how to extract resources from depths. With geothermal, it is similar in that we are assessing the sub-surface with seismic geology and engineering as you would see with oil wells. Geothermal is a really natural fit with what we already know how to do.”

The main principle behind geothermal energy production is there is a natural heat to the earth which gets 25 C to 30 C hotter for each kilometre you go down. When you drill to a level about 3 km below, you get into the 90 C heat range, ideal for geothermal heat generation. The goal of drilling is to find deep pools of thermal-heated water at this level and extract the water to harness the heat within for energy generation on the surface. Once the water cools, you inject it back into the deep pool below to be reheated and begin the entire process again, creating a limitless supply of renewable energy.

Unlike in Europe where the technology is already widely adopted, there has been no commercially-driven geothermal project development in Alberta.

“The economics of geothermal don’t really compete well with oil and gas,” Lappin says. “While it would be quite seamless for these oil and gas companies to do geothermal, when you are looking for competing for capital within a large organization geothermal projects don’t rise to the top of the pile.

“They typically pay out over a lot longer period of time. Another reason is we don’t have a policy framework currently in place in Alberta for geothermal. The ownership of the heat produced is not defined. You can’t go out and buy a heat permit, for example.”

While most areas of Alberta are well suited to the technology, in Medicine Hat the case is not so cut and dry. It is extremely difficult to get into that ideal 3 km zone in the subsurface geology of the region, says Lappin.

“The sedimentary column at Medicine Hat is around 2,000 metres,” explains Lappin. “You can drill below that to access higher temperatures but you would have to go into the crystalline basement rock; composed of granite and harder rocks. You would really have to carefully assess the economics of that.”

Lappin is still excited about Alberta’s geothermal potential as a whole, and feels the technology’s day will soon come.

“I would love to see collaboration between oil and gas and geothermal,” she says. “I honestly think the best way to hit this out of the park is to work together. I expect great things if we figure out a way to do that.”

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