Australian interest in mining and the geothermal potential of Papua New Guinea
Lihir Gold Mine, Papua New Guinea - geothermal plant to the left side (source: Newcrest Mining)
Alexander Richter
7 Nov 2020
With the release of a new geothermal resource policy in Papua New Guinea, interest in combining mining activities with geothermal power generation has awakened, as highlighted by the Australian Geothermal Association in a release.
In a release shared with ThinkGeoEnergy, the Australian Geothermal Association (AGA) announced having recently initiated a Special Interest Group (SIG) for geothermal energy in the Western Pacific with an initial focus on Papua New Guinea. Co-chairs of this SIG are Gibson Porkime and Martin Pujol.
AGA highlights the geothermal potential in Papua New Guinea (PNG) in light of the government’s new Geothermal Resource Policy in late August 2020 which provides a clear legal framework for undertaking geothermal projects.
Geothermal resources identified in PNG are generally remote, far away from populous areas. However, some are located near mining developments. This provides an opportunity for the utilisation of geothermal resources by mining companies for power generation thus decreasing operating expenses while also reducing the carbon footprint of those developments.
The 56 MW Lihir geothermal power plant provides a good (and unusual) example of geothermal power production in mining in Papua New Guinea. Newcrest’s Lihir Gold Mine, located on Lihir (Niolam) Island in the New Ireland Province of PNG, is one of the world’s largest epithermal gold mines. Based on the review of available public data, similar geothermal resources to that of Lihir exist across PNG (200 to 320°C) and can be used to generate off grid production for other current or future mining operations.
AGA understands that other mining companies are now actively looking at the geothermal potential in the region. Australian geothermal exploration companies also have active and past exploration licences in the region.
Australian geothermal exploration companies also have active and past exploration licences in the region. AGA considers that the utilisation of geothermal resources can contribute significantly to achieving water and energy related targets identified in PNG’s Vision 2050. Potential applications are provided here in AGA’s summary paper (pdf).
AGA’s Special Interest Group is considering organising a webinar on the geothermal potential in PNG and the new Geothermal Resource Policy in the next few months. Please contact us by email if you are potentially interested in attending/contributing to such a webinar.
Source: Australian Geothermal Association
