Marianas optimistic on geothermal potential following initial drilling
Saipan, Northern Marianas (source: flickr/ ctsnow, creative commons)
Francisco Rojas
11 Sep 2014
Commonwealth Utilities Corp (CUC) in Marianas reveals that there might be geothermal potential for a power plant the Gualo Rai area.
Local news from Micronesia inform that the Commonwealth Utilities Corp (CUC) has told the local government that exploration on the Gualo Rai area may be feasible for geothermal exploitation.
CUC Board Chairman David J. Sablan said these findings occurred during digging operations intended for water wells, turned into a geothermal resource assessment when the contractor discovered increasing water temperatures. Following this discovery, CUC was allowed by the Department of Interior to use $1.1 million intended for said water wells to develop geothermal.
The company states that there have been some drilling at 400 feet seeing an increase in temperature and expect to drill at 1600 feet soon.
The estimates for a power plant would not go farther than a few MW.
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Source: Marianas Variety Website
