Energy services group SPIE has taken on the operational management of a geothermal power plant in Bavaria, Germany, believed to be the first of its kind worldwide.
The facility is thought to be the world’s first commercial geothermal power plant that uses deep geothermal rock, rather than thermal water, to generate district heating and electricity.
“This makes SPIE part of a major project in the renewable energy market segment,” the company noted in a statement.
The project, commissioned by Eavor Erdwärme Geretsried GmbH & Co KG, will supply the town of Geretsried in southern Germany and the surrounding region.
SPIE will advise the customer on the legally compliant marketing and commissioning of individual plant components and will subsequently assume responsibility for the technical operation and maintenance of the geothermal power plant’s above-ground systems.
This also includes maintenance of parts of the ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle) system, which uses surplus heat to produce CO2-low electricity.
The intention is to ensure maximum plant availability and operational reliability with a 24/7 on-call service.
“To meet the complexity of this highly innovative plant, we offer our customer a flexible service model that adapts to changing needs throughout the entire contract term,” said Aaron Eißner, Sales Manager in the Efficient Facilities operational division at SPIE Germany Switzerland Austria.
The power generation process will start operations in the autumn, while district heating production is currently in the planning stage.
Once the district heating station has been completed, SPIE will also take over its operational management and ensure plant availability.
The Eavor-Loop is a geothermal power plant with a closed-loop system, comparable to a giant underground radiator.
Two drilling rigs bore vertically to a depth of 4,500 metres, where the wells are then deflected horizontally to create 12 parallel branches, each between 3,000 and 3,500 metres long.
Each loop thus comprises around 80 kilometres of borehole.
The fluid injected from above is naturally heated in the lower section of the system as it passes through the deep rock before rising to the surface without the need for additional pumps, thanks to the thermosiphon effect.
The heat is then extracted via a heat exchanger and can be used directly for district heating networks or electricity generation.
“Geothermal energy is a natural, stable and reliable source of renewable energy,” said Stefan Schusterschitz, General Manager of the Efficient Facilities operational division at SPIE Germany Switzerland Austria.
“With our technical expertise, we are helping to drive this innovation forward in Germany and to establish a key technology for the renewable energy mix of the future.”
The plant in Geretsried is already the third geothermal facility in Bavaria managed by SPIE, following those in Dürrnhaar and Kirchstockach.