Fonroche to start drilling on new geothermal project in the Alsace, France in June 2017

The Group will assist Fonroche Géothermie, a developer of geothermal energy projects, in the exploration phase for underground reserves in Alsace (East of France), on the site of the former Reichstett refinery (municipality of Vendenheim) and the Eckbolsheim site. The project will consist of two to four wells drilled in doublets (one injection well and one production well) for between 1700 and 3400 tons of semi-premium and premium tubes and connections, including the VAM® 21TM, the highest performing connection on the premium market to date. In order to optimize the customer’s costs, Vallourec will provide “just-in-time” delivery. A team of VAM® Field Services technicians will also be involved, supervising the on-site descent. The drilling of the first well is expected to begin in June 2017. If results are positive, production will start soon thereafter at the wells.

For this project, the tubes are being manufactured in Vallourec’s European factories in Mülheim and Rath (Düsseldorf) in Germany and in Aulnoye-Aymeries in northern France.The contract follows the one obtained last spring for the geothermal plant in Holzkirchen, in Bavaria, for which Vallourec successfully delivered 1500 tons of tubes and whose operation is set to begin in 2017. They bear witness to Vallourec’s commitment to renewable energy.