If I fail to hear back from companies when enquiring for information about a project, I mostly decide not to write about it at all. But in the case of Eavor, I think it is worth dedicating a piece to it. An article in the Merkur newspaper in Germany namely suggested that changes had been made to the drilling program, but details were not disclosed.
What is the Geretsried project about?
In Geretsried, Eavor is drilling 4,500-meter-deep wells into the granite subsurface, connecting a system of wellbores to function like radiator coils. This closed loop system circulates water that is naturally heated by the Earth’s energy, reaching temperatures of up to 160°C. The heated water is then pumped to the surface to generate heat and electricity for the surrounding region. Source
First of all, I asked the drilling company involved, KCA Deutag, if they could share some information about the project. I spoke to a company representative, but it became clear that they cannot share any information as a contractor. That is not a surprise at all, of course, but it is also interesting to see how many activities that take place at the rig are outsourced again, which means that the drilling company has limited oversight of the project, even when it happens on their rig floor.
Then, I also approached someone at Eavor itself, via LinkedIn. My request was accepted after a few days, and I received an email address I could send my questions to. So I did, but only after reminding my contact twice I became aware that he had forwarded my questions to a colleague, who said that he was travelling and had limited time. In the meantime, a management assistant also got in touch, and she promised me a response as soon as possible. That was on January 29.
At the time of writing, it was one day before we went to print, and despite another two reminder emails, I did not hear from either of my contacts again. That begs the question, is it something to be surprised about, given that they are in the middle of such a landmark and no doubt stressful project?
If this were an operator drilling a well that was funded privately, I would not complain about not hearing back. But in this case, it is different. The Geretsried project is, for a significant part, funded by public money; €92 million through the EU Innovation Fund alone. In addition, in an article published late last year (MERKUR.de, Rekordhalter in der Branche: Geothermie-Kraftwerk ist fertig – Stromerzeugung verzögert sich), the authors write that “the company declined to say whether its cost estimates were on track to break even, with or without subsidies.”
I have reservations about this style of working; private companies spending public money should be made more welcoming to answering technical questions related to their projects, especially when there is so much at stake and maybe even more so because the company has advanced plans to drill these deep closed loop projects in other places as well. Would it not be prudent to first see if the concept really works – which is ultimately going to be the energy harvested – and then move on? If I were the mayor of Hannover, where the next project is planned, I would certainly think so.
