Deep closed-loop geothermal well drilled in Henan Province, China
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Wanjiang New Energy has designed and constructed a deep, closed-loop geothermal system for heating in Henan Province, China.
Local media in China has reported that a pair of deep geothermal wells has been connected at depth in Henan Province, effectively creating a closed-loop geothermal system. The project was designed and constructed by Wanjiang New Energy with investment by Xinxiang Innovation Investment Co. Ltd.
As detailed in the report, the system consists of two deep geothermal wells. The first well was drilled vertically to a depth exceeding 3500 meters. Another well, located only 35 meters way on the surface, was drilled directionally with increasing inclination until the bottom section was horizontal. Data shows that the two wells intersected at a depth of 3515 meters, forming an angle of nearly 90 degrees. The bottomhole temperature at the intersection point reached 117.52 ºC.
To attain high-precision drilling, the project team adopted a navigation system combining pulse telemetry and magnetic guidance. By transmitting downhole attitude data in real time through drilling measurements, and activating centimeter-level magnetic guidance for precise correction when approaching the docking point, high-precision targeting can be achieved at depths of thousands of meters.
According to tests, the closed-loop system has a heat extraction capacity that is five times higher than a coaxial well drilled to similar depths. Based on the plans for the Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley Clean Energy Central Heating Project, seven sets of closed-loop geothermal wells will be drilled which will serve two heating centers. This is expected to meet the heating needs of about 2.76 million square meters of buildings. Academician Wang Jiyang of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
Based on the description of the system, the closed-loop architecture implemented in Henan unavoidably draws comparison to the closed-loop geothermal technology designed and built by Eavor Technologies in Geretsried in Germany. This project has been covered extensively by ThinkGeoEnergy in the past years. More technical details on the Eavor’s pilot commercial-scale project were shared in a recent exclusive interview.
