Fervo Energy has announced that it has set a new company record for drilling pace with the drilling of the Sawtooth 7 well as part of Phase II of the Cape Station geothermal project in Utah. The Sawtooth 7 well, with a total measured depth of 19,448 feet (5927 meters) which includes a 7500 foot (2286 meters) lateral section, was drilled in just 21 days from spud to total depth (TD).
The Sawtooth 7 well uses the company’s 3rd generation well design, creating a well that is substantially deeper, hotter, and longer than the wells drilled for Cape Station Phase I. According to the company statement, Cape Station Phase I is on track to deliver first power to the grid later this year.
The table below summarizes the evolution of Fervo’s well design from the initial Project Red in Nevada to Phase II of Cape Station.
Sawtooth 7 is the ninth well Fervo has drilled for Cape Phase II, a 400 MW development set to deliver power in 2028. By implementing larger casing diameters, longer laterals, and targeting higher temperatures, Phase II is set to deliver significantly increased power output per well and improved project economics.
Back in early 2024, Fervo reported a 70% reduction in drilling time at a geothermal well drilled for Cape Station Phase I, against the baseline set by the company’s first commercial horizontal well at Project Red. With the completion of Sawtooth 7, the company has achieved the same 70% reduction in drilling time with a well that is substantially deeper, hotter, and longer than the Fervo 2.0 well design used in Cape Phase I.
“We have long believed that learning curves would enable Fervo to drill increasingly deeper, accessing higher-temperature rock without meaningfully increasing drilling costs,” said Fervo CEO and co-founder Tim Latimer.
“With this momentum from initial Phase II drilling, we expect Fervo’s 3.0 well design to produce substantially more megawatts per well and significantly improve the unit economics of future GeoBlocks™. Based on our performance to date, we believe Cape Phase II is on track to deliver at $5,500 per kilowatt, and we remain firmly committed to our goal of achieving $3,000 per kilowatt.”
Source: Fervo Energy
