Geothermal Energy System Inspired

Geothermal Energy System Inspired

  March 11, 2022

 MINES AWARDED $6.3 MILLION TO BUILD NEW GEOTHERMAL ENERGY SYSTEMS INSPIRED BY SHALE TECHNELOGY

Led by William Fleckenstein, Director of Strategic Business Development in Global Initiatives and Professor of Practice in Petroleum Engineering, the Mines team will build and test tools for harvesting geothermal energy using an Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) based on existing Mines-patented technologies for multistage hydraulic fracturing. 

“Geothermal has the potential to revolutionize renewable energy, but to achieve that promise, we need better ways to build the subsurface heat exchanger,” Fleckenstein said. “In states like California, where 10 percent of the state’s renewable electric power comes from geothermal, there is easy access to extremely hot geothermal energy. Drilling down vertically near the Salton Sea, for example, temperatures reach 650 degrees Fahrenheit a mile down. Here in Colorado, there are similar but cooler geothermal opportunities, the reason we have natural hot springs at places like Idaho, Glenwood or Pagosa Springs.”

A 2006 report by MIT and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy conducted the most comprehensive analysis to date on the potential and technical status of EGS. This report calculated the U.S. total EGS resources from 3 to 10 kilometers of depth to be over 13,000 zettajoules, of which over 200 ZJ would be extractable, with the potential to increase this to over 2,000 ZJ with technology improvements — sufficient to provide all the world's current energy needs for several millennia.

“Horizontal wellbores, like the ones used in shale development, may be the answer to make geothermal a viable energy source in other areas,” Fleckenstein said. These can be several miles long, with 100 or more sleeves to construct a sub-surface heat exchanger that creates a fracture system between wells, using the sleeves first for multistage fracturing to create the fracture system.  Then the sleeves can be opened and closed to ensure the injected water goes where the heat is.  Cold water is pumped in, and the system is controlled to make sure the water does not short circuit between wells, but instead acts to harvest the entire area’s heat. With injection and take points in the parallel wellbores, each pair would act like its own small EGS system, thus allowing the geothermal heat to be harvested and transferred to power plants from the entire system.

“You need something that allows you to harvest from nature,” Fleckenstein said. “Everywhere in the world, you have heat at some depth in between us and the Earth’s core. If you can drill inexpensively enough, you can access that energy, but you need the EGS system with the ability to harvest the heat and bring it back.”

“Once the project is proven successful, the next step is more research to do it deeper, faster and cheaper. That would make geothermal a practicable energy source for more places in the United States than most notably California.  Geothermal potential is worldwide - the Earth’s heat is everywhere below us.” Fleckenstein said.

Subcontractors on the project, Tejas Research and Engineering and KSWC Engineering and Machining, have world-wide reputations in tool design and machining, and will assist in designing and building the tools necessary for the construction of the subsurface heat exchanger.

“Mines facilities like the Apache Drilling Research Lab, Geomechanics Lab, Hydraulic Fracturing Lab, the Edgar Experimental Mine and several machine shops make Mines an ideal place to test prototypes for this project. “Getting this large award for geothermal EGS can hopefully attract funding to tackle other parts of the problem, like finding faster ways to drill,” Fleckenstein said.  “Geothermal power does not rely on the sun to shine or the wind to blow, and its very nature makes it unlikely to freeze in the dead of winter.

Shell sorry and pledges to stop buying Russian oil

Shell sorry and pledges to stop buying Russian oil

  March 08, 2022

SHELL SORRY AND PLEDGES TO STOP BUYING RUSIAN OIL

Shell has pledged to stop buying oil from Russia as it apologized for its purchase of cheap Russian crude at the weekend.

The energy giant also said it would close all its service stations in the country and stop all current work there.

Shell came under huge criticism at the weekend after it purchased a cargo of Russian crude at a discounted price.

Its boss said on Tuesday, however, that it was wrong to buy Russian oil.

"We are acutely aware that our decision last week to purchase a cargo of Russian crude oil... was not the right one and we are sorry," Mr van Beurden said.

The company said it will immediately stop purchasing Russian crude oil and will shut about 500 service stations there, as well as halting its aviation fuel and lubricant operations in the country

The rest of the company's exit from Russian oil and gas is expected to take some time.

The Ukrainian foreign minister had hit out at the firm on social media after it emerged Shell had bought crude.

'Complex challenge'

• Oil price rises again as buyers shun Russian fuel

• Ukraine war is economic catastrophe - World Bank

• BP to offload stake in Russian oil firm Rosneft

Exiting the Russia market is "a complex challenge," admitted Mr van Beurden.

"Changing this part of the energy system will require concerted action by governments, energy suppliers and customers, and a transition to other energy supplies will take much longer."

When Shell was forced to defend its purchase of Russian crude over the weekend, it insisted that it had "no alternative" in order to maintain timely supplies of fuel to Europe.

Russian oil currently makes up about 8% of Shell's working supplies. One of the firm's refineries, which produces diesel and petrol and other products, is also among the biggest in Europe.

Cargoes from other sources would not have arrived in time to avoid disruptions to market supply, it said.

It still remains unclear, however, how exactly Shell will replace the volume of energy produced by Russia.

"These societal challenges highlight the dilemma between putting pressure on the Russian government over its atrocities in Ukraine and ensuring stable, secure energy supplies across Europe," said Mr van Beurden.

"But ultimately, it is for governments to decide on the incredibly difficult trade-offs that must be made during the war in Ukraine."

He added that the firm would continue to work with governments on how to manage any potential impact on energy supplies.

And any profits it generates from remaining Russian oil will go to dedicated funds aimed at helping people affected by the war in Ukraine.

The move follows previous announcements by the company, which set out its plans to end all of its joint ventures with the Russian energy company Gazprom following the invasion.

That will involve the company selling its 27.5% stake in a major liquefied natural gas plant and a 50% stake in two oilfield projects in Siberia.

It will also end its involvement in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Russia and Germany. The 1,200km pipeline under the Baltic Sea had already been put on hold by German ministers.

Shell said that it expected the move would cost about $3bn (£2.2bn) and followed on from BP announcing it would offload its 19.75% stake in Russian state-owned oil firm Rosneft, which it has held since 2013. BP's stake in Rosneft is valued at around $25bn.

Extracting a company like Shell from the Russian energy market is a complex business.

Unlike BP, which owns a 19.75% financial stake in Rosneft which it intends to walk away from, Shell has complex operations with thousands of employees on the ground. Extricating itself from long-term supply contracts will take months.

Buying a cargo of Russian crude at knock-down prices as other companies shunned Russian supplies drew outrage on social media and, according to Shell sources, dismay from its own employees in Ukraine.

The company insists it had to buy the cargo to avoid disruptions to operations at its huge refinery in Pernis, Rotterdam, and was not "trying to make a quick buck".

But that explanation drew scepticism in some quarters and the chief executive apologised today, saying it had been the wrong thing to do. The company also said that phasing out Russian oil and gas would need to be done carefully to minimise the damage done to the rest of the world.

A reminder that the tougher the sanction, the greater the collateral damage on those imposing them.

Shell's plans emerged as a warning from Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that it would close its main gas pipeline to Germany if the West goes ahead with a ban on Russian oil.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said a "rejection of Russian oil would lead to catastrophic consequences for the global market", causing prices to more than double to $300 a barrel.

The US has been exploring a potential ban with allies as a way of punishing Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, but Germany and the Netherlands rejected the plan on Monday.

The EU gets about 40% of its gas and 30% of its oil from Russia, and has no easy substitutes if supplies are disrupted, as Shell has pointed out.

While the UK would not be directly impacted by supply disruption, as it imports less than 5% of its gas from Russia, it would be affected by prices rising in the global markets as demand in Europe increases.

Nord Stream 2 Condition Get to know Nord Stream 2, the US's new 'weapon' beats Russia

Nord Stream 2 Condition Get to know Nord Stream 2, the US's new 'weapon' beats Russia

  March 08, 2022

GET TO KNOW NORD STRAM 2 

Relations between the West and Russia are still tense. Although French leader Emmanuel Macron is now meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to resolve the issue, the conflict continues to escalate.

It is a continuation of Nord Stream 1, which has been operating on the same line since 2011 in the Baltic Sea. The pipeline spans 1,230 km and connects Ust-Luga in Russia with Greifswald in northeastern Germany.

Citing Euronews , construction has started since May 2018. However, the project was completed on September 10, 2021, 1.5 years behind schedule.

Using Nord Stream 2 as a "quick move" to hit Russia has actually been echoed by a number of parties. One of them was the former German Ambassador to the US, Wolfgang Ischinger.

Recently, the President of the United States (US) Joe Biden who met German Chancellor Olaf Scholz gave a new threat to Russia, Monday (7/2/2022). If Russia attacks Ukraine, the West will stop the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project

So what exactly is Nord Stream 2? Why is this a "death tactic" for the US and its allies to hit Russia?

The Nord Stream 2 pipeline is a natural gas pipeline between Russia and Germany. Currently, the pipeline has actually been completed, but is not yet operational.

Who's the Owner?

The owner of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline is Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom. Where the Russian SOE took over half of the project's cost of US$ 11 billion.

The rest is borne by a consortium of European companies. Namely MV (Austria), Wintershall Dea (Germany), Engie (France), Uniper (Germany) and Shell (England).

Ideally, if legally operational, Nord Stream should deliver 55 billion cubic meters of gas annually to the 26 million potential households in Germany. But the project still requires certification from German authorities before it can start delivering gas.

On the other hand, this project is controversial for a number of countries on the continent such as Ukraine and Poland. Because this will eliminate the "transit fee" scheme from the previous gas delivery line.

Who Profits with Nord Stream?

In fact, initially Germany matched Russia. Germany relies on Russian gas, which is considered a transitional fuel in an effort to abandon fossil energy.

Pipelines will be a relatively inexpensive way to obtain raw materials and meet the country's energy needs. However, the current government is not the former government.

The new government is supported by three different parties. Including the Green Party which rejected the project for geostrategic and climate policy reasons.

Russia itself could certainly benefit from this due to the proceeds from the sale of gas, which would bring financial benefits.

"I think the pipeline is a key item for us, if we handle it smartly," he said 

However, he stressed, the West still needs to be careful. Moreover, according to Eurostat , about 43% of Europe's total gas imports come from Russia.

The US is also said to be racking its brains to fill the gap in gas supply with LNG if a supply shortage occurs. LNG from Qatar, for example, is one of them.

On the other hand, Russia has also begun to widen its dependence on fossil fuel revenues to other countries. One of them is China.

Last week, the two countries agreed a 30-year contract to supply gas to China and build a new pipeline. But, citing The Guardian, the EU remains a lucrative customer for now.