The Iberian Peninsula is capable of more

    




About 500 power stations around the world already use geothermal energy to generate electricity. But this way is not Spain.

Meanwhile, the subsoil of the Iberian Peninsula have the potential electricity production is equivalent to 700 GW of installed capacity, when using so-called enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) at a depth of from 3 to 10 kilometers, where the temperature exceeds 150 0C.

"The process of receiving electricity with the help of EGS is to use water (or liquid carbon dioxide) to extract thermal energy from the rock located a few thousand metres below the Earth's surface. In addition, not so long ago these systems were significantly improved due to the spread in oil extraction method of hydraulic fracturing (fracking)," said one of the authors césar Chamorro. – "Hot water rises upwards to the geothermal station, where it produces electricity, generally via a closed binary cycle (heat exchange between water and an organic liquid, followed by its return to its original reservoir through injection wells)".

Despite the fact that power plants operating on EGS technologies are in such industrialized countries as the USA, Australia and Japan, they all work in test mode. Only one station of this type is connected to the grid – Sul-sous-Foret in France. Other geothermal stations are located only a few parts of the world where there is a thermal anomaly located at a small depth the source of hot water.

Meanwhile, the opportunities of geothermal energy have great potential for continuous satisfaction of the needs for electric energy in the medium or long term. Power equivalent to 700 GW of installed capacity referred to in their study, more than 5 times higher than the total installed capacity of all power plants in Spain, including fossil, nuclear and renewable energy.

Source: greenevolution.ru