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Geodynamics (GDY.AX) to drill first well in January |
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| AUSTRALIA: December 17, 2002 | ||
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MELBOURNE - Australian renewable energy hopeful Geodynamics Ltd said on Monday it will begin drilling its first A$5.4 million ($3 million) geothermal well in January.
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Geodynamics plans to drill wells three to five km (two to three miles) into the earth's surface and circulate water through extremely hot granite before drawing it out and using it to generate power. Chief Executive Bertus de Graaf said the Habanero 1 well in the Cooper Basin in South Australia state would be drilled to a depth of between 4,500 metres and 4,900 metres over 10 weeks. "All the permits are now completed and we have the green light to start drilling," de Graaf said in a statement. The well will be the first stage of the company's A$16 million Hot Dry Rock (HDR) geothermal energy programme. Geodynamics estimates the stored thermal energy accessible in a 1,000 metre thick slab of granite in its Geothermal Exploration Licence area is equal to 50 billion barrels of oil, compared with Australia's proven oil reserves of three billion barrels. The largest shareholder in the company is Woodside Petroleum (WPL.AX), which purchased a 31.6 percent stake through its renewable energy unit Metasource. Santos Ltd (STO.AX) has signed a memorandum of understanding for the supply of 13 megawatts of power to its Moomba production plant in South Australia from Geodynamics' demonstration power plant, due to be operating by mid-2005. Shares in Geodynamics, which listed with an issue price of 50 cents a share in September, closed up 2.2 percent at 46 cents on Monday. ($1=A$1.75).
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REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
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