Advanced Geothermal Drilling Techniques

Participants:

Canadian Geothermal Energy Association, EC, Iceland, Mexico, New Zealand, USA

Description:

Drilling is an essential and expensive part of geothermal exploration, development, and application. Drilling, logging, and completing geothermal wells are expensive because of high temperatures and hard, fractured formations. The consequences of reducing cost are often impressive, because drilling and well completion can account for more than half of the capital cost for a geothermal power project.

Geothermal drilling cost reduction can take many forms; e.g. faster drilling rates, increased bit or tool life, less trouble (twist-offs, stuck pipe, etc.), higher per-well production through multi-laterals and others.

This Annex pursues advanced geothermal drilling research and investigates all aspects of well construction to reduce costs associated with this essential and expensive part of exploration, development and utilization.

Annex VII began in 2001 and will continue through 2009.

Annex VII is divided into three Tasks.

Task A- Compile Geothermal Well Drilling Cost and Performance Information (Task Leader: Stephen J Bauer, Sandia National Laboratories, USA)

The activity is to compilation actual drilling cost and performance results associated with the development, construction and operation of geothermal wells. This information will be maintained in a single database, so that all participants can use it to identify key drilling operations that might be improved by new technology or by different drilling practices. It will include information on wells for both electricity and direct-use applications (including geothermal heat pumps), and will include information from 1990 to date.

Task B- Geothermal Drilling Best Practices Handbook (Task Leader: Stephen J Bauer, Sandia National Laboratories, USA)

The participants plan to identify and catalogue the technologies that have been most successful for drilling, logging and completing geothermal wells. A complete Handbook will contain drilling practices for both direct use (low temperature) and electrical generation (high temperature) wells. The complete Handbook will eventually include, but not be limited to: design criteria for the drilling and completion programs, drilling practices for cost avoidance, problem diagnosis and remediation during slimhole drilling, trouble avoidance, well testing, geophysical logging and wellbore preservation.

Task C- Advanced Drilling Collaboration (Task Leader: Stephen J Bauer, Sandia National Laboratories, USA)

The participants will monitor and exchange information on drilling technology development and new applications in their respective countries. The participants will also identify activities and projects for collaboration, and then collaboration plans will be developed. For example, the participants anticipate identifying opportunities to field-test in one country a technology/system that is being developed in another participant’s country.

Highlights and Outputs of Annex VII

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