FindHeat - An Innovative Exploration Philosophy and Toolkit for Finding Geothermal Heat Efficiently and Sustainably

Le résumé fourni par la source

FindHeat is a new Horizon Europe R&D project, involving six research institutions and five industry partners, that aims to transfer successful exploration and appraisal philosophies from more established industries to a broad range of geothermal plays. FindHeat will provide a modular toolkit of innovative software tools, geophysical exploration techniques, and new training materials to engage with a broad range of stakeholders from industry and society. The key element for successful exploration and appraisal workflows, as demonstrated in the hydrocarbon and mineral industries, is the emphasis on conceptual models of geological processes that influence the occurrence and economic viability of exploration targets. Rather than adhering to a single geological concept, this approach facilitates resource assessments across multiple scenarios. A similar approach is expected to ultimately catalyse a paradigm shift towards exploiting geothermal resources with inherently low technical and economic risks. The FindHeat approach will be validated across eight geologically diverse geothermal plays. Specifically, we will demonstrate its technical and economic benefits arising from faster turnaround times for exploration and appraisal of geothermal resources, making better use of legacy data and non-invasive geophysical techniques, and constraining uncertainties with respect to the size of the heat source and the range of possible heat production rates. Comprehensive social science research at the field sites will facilitate a new public place-based engagement process to earn public trust. Tailored training materials will be developed to disseminate the workflow to industry professionals and decision-makers from society.

Ce résumé expose les affirmations des auteurs. BNTIC ne l’interprète pas comme une validation indépendante des résultats.