Supporting Alberta’s energy transition with geothermal energy

As society transitions away from carbon-intensive processes, such as combusting coal and gas, there comes a need for more clean and reliable sources of heat and power that can meet our growing energy demands. While southern Alberta is known for its long hours of sun and windy regions, making it a prime space for solar and wind energy, these clean sources are intermittent and cannot be solely relied upon for our clean energy future. Therefore, the best-kept secret of our province is the renewable energy resource of the North: geothermal energy.

Geothermal energy is a baseload (constant), renewable energy source that uses the Earth’s natural heat. Conventional geothermal energy projects, like Terrapin’s Alberta No. 1 project, drills two to four kilometres into the earth to reach high temperature geothermal brine. If hot enough, this brine is pumped to surface and the heat is extracted and used to operate a power generation turbine. Once the useful work is complete, the brine is reinjected into the earth to be heated up again, making the process renewable. Because there is a consistent supply of geothermal heat, geothermal power plants can run 24/7, 365 days a year. Earlier this year, Alberta No. 1 confirmed geothermal power potential in the province with its temperature log on a dormant oil and gas well; the results returned a temperature of 118°C, which exceeds minimum power production temperature requirements by almost 20°C.

The value of geothermal energy doesn’t stop at renewable power production. Conventional geothermal energy projects like Alberta No. 1 can harness the lower-grade heat that is left over from the power production process and use it directly. Ranging from 40°C to 80°C, this heat can be supplied to a district heating/ cooling network and be dispatched for processes such as greenhouse growing, crop drying, or any other heat intensive processes that would normally rely on hydrocarbons for energy. This spring, Alberta No. 1 had partnered with a local vermicompost company to explore sustainable agricultural opportunities supported by geothermal heat.

Geothermal energy could also help advance our carbon reduction goals. By exporting clean energy to the grid, geothermal power plants would generate carbon offsets. Alberta No. 1 alone will generate 41,000 tonnes of carbon offsets from its electricity and 55,000 tonnes of carbon offsets from its heat, totalling 96,000 tonnes of carbon offsets at full production. This is equal to 20,878 cars being taken off the road. Alberta No. 1 aims to not only make geothermal energy zero-carbon, but carbon negative, by combining energy production with carbon capture and sequestration. On November 4, Alberta No. 1 announced its research partnership with the University of Alberta to investigate capturing and storing carbon in a geothermal reservoir, which will be the first endeavour of its kind globally.

Geothermal energy offers triple value to Albertans – reliable power, clean heat, and carbon offsets. To learn more about Alberta No. 1 and how Terrapin develops projects for our clean energy future, please visit terrapingeo.com.

Ranging from 40°C to 80°C, this heat can be supplied to a district heating/cooling network and be dispatched for processes such as greenhouse growing, crop drying, or any other heat intensive processes that would normally rely on hydrocarbons for energy.