Drilling started for Kirchanschöring geothermal project, Bavaria
Drilling has been kicked off for a planned geothermal heat and power project in Kirchanschöring in Bavaria, Germany.
Following the successful completion of the work on the drilling pad, drilling on the first well for the geothermal project in Kirchanschöring, Bavaria has officially started. The project developer Geothermie Rupertiwinkel plans to drill a total of four wells.
The hydraulic drilling rig of contractor H. Angers Söhne is particularly quiet, 51.8 meters high, weighs 410 tons and has a maximum hook load of 420 tons. The system has already been successfully used in other drilling projects as part of geothermal projects in Bavaria, such as in Kirchweidach from 2010 to 2012 and 2012 to 2013 in Traunreut.
All four planned wells will be drilled one after the other from the same drilling site. They are about 0.6 meters in diameter in the top section and gradually taper down to about 0.2 meters and on the way down. The wells are targeted to reach a depth of 4,500 meters, while expected to be directionally drilled to reach the resource targets.
Two of the wells are being expanded into production wells, the other two wells will be reinjection wells. Drilling is expected to last less than two years.
In addition to the drilling team, the drilling work is continuously monitored by other drilling engineers, geologists and HSE experts as well as the authorities. The project company Geothermie Rupertiwinkel GmbH (GTR) installed a seismic measuring system before the construction work began in order to measure and document even the smallest movements and vibrations.
Comprehensive measures were taken before drilling began to ensure compliance with the highest environmental standards. For example, the lighting in the work area is equipped with insect-friendly lights; the proportion of scattered light in the direction of the forest is also minimized. Furthermore, extensive reptile and amphibian protection fences were built.
An ecological construction supervision checks the effectiveness of the measures during the entire drilling and construction phase and adapts them if necessary.
The project plans to build a geothermal power and heat plant with expected 10-12 MWe power generation capacity from a planned ORC plant. The expected resource temperature is estimated at 130 degrees Celsius. Construction on the plant is expected to start in 2022, with a planned start of operation in Q4 2022.
Source: Geothermie Rupertiwinkel