The Interior Department gave the green light to Fervo Energy’s Cape Geothermal Power Project in Beaver County, Utah, the White House confirmed to The Washington Post.
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I don’t know enough of this technology, but the article says they do fracking to “release geothermal energy, not oil and gas”. So I imagine it will have the same ecological damage as fracking. Maybe someone more knowledgeable can explain where I’m wrong.
They’re fracking, but in granite, rather than in an oil and gas deposit. So you shouldn’t see the same kinds of hydrocarbon releases and contamination that go with fracking for oil and gas, or the same huge production of contaminated wastewater that needs to be disposed of.
The drilling is limited to the making the channels for water flow. They are using maneuverable fracking drills and tools to get to the depths they need. They then inject water for use in the heating loop. This water should be used continuously, although it a unclear if it will need to be topped up.
Some of these geothermal startups are creating “natural” cracks via drilling to circulate water, while others are using the drilling to place fixed piping. The latter is hard, more expensive and likely more efficient. The company in the article is doing the former if Im not mistaken.
Cool! This makes more sense now