UDDGP Final Testing Phase – Week Ending Friday 7th August.
It has been a very busy June, July and start to August at the UDDGP site despite the difficulties of managing social distancing and COVID related delays. This culminated in around 9 days of testing in order to better understand the geology and temperature of the deep well.
We would like to reiterate our appreciation and thanks to the local communities who have supported us throughout. We are disappointed that we cannot have public Drop-In sessions for you to see what is going on and talk to the team, we hope this update will answer some of the questions you may have.
The recent announcement regarding the governments “Getting Building” initiative, which the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly LEP announced on 4th August has raised some question about the UDDGP project and its objectives. The aim of the UDDGP project has always been to prove that geothermal power can be produced in Cornwall and this is still our
primary focus, however, GEL is more than happy to undertake a trial of lithium extraction technology at the United Downs site using the geothermal brine. This is a great opportunity for Cornwall to be at the forefront of cutting-edge research, leading the way not only in the UK but Europe. This trial will not happen for some time as expert consultation
and planning will be needed. This news has travelled fast and we are pleased that our project will be featured on BBC Countryfile. More details will be posted on our social media.
Geothermal Testing Results
During the first stage of our final testing phase we successfully retrieved a number of good quality core samples from between 4 and 5km depths in the production well, which have now been sent away for analysis. This was part of a suit of geology tests, all of which will give the team vital information about the Porthtowan Fault zone and the geothermal
reservoir in general. We were also able to measure the temperature in the deep well, which was 188C, more than sufficient to produce electricity, which is the purpose of the ERDF and Cornwall Council funding. GEL collected a lot of data as well as sending brine (geothermal fluid) and the core samples away for analysis. Many people have asked for these results via our social media, but it is going to take some time to properly analyse the results in a number of laboratories.
Geothermal testing next steps
There will be a second short phase of testing around mid-September (COVID permitting). This will focus on flow testing the deep well (water production and water injection). We will issue another project update in a couple of week’s time with more details.
GEL Website
We have been working hard in the background creating a new website for GEL that includes information about our geothermal projects instead of having separate ones. We are just making the final finishing touches and it will be launched as soon as possible. The launch will be announced on our social media (details below).
If you have any questions regarding the above information, do not hesitate to contact us.
Thank you
Dr Ryan Law
Managing Director
Geothermal Engineering Ltd
