Ivan Kocis: We could offer the solution for ultra deep geothermal drilling

The Conference "Common EU Energy Policy and Energy Security of Slovak Republic" culminates today (24th Nov). 

Geothermania was also presented by Geothermal Anywhere‘s Ivan Kocis. EurActiv.sk online daily writes about this event and we offer the part of report, which we translated to English:

Original text (shortened):

The fundamental question about renewable energy is continuous production, says Geothermal Anywhere‘s Ivan Kocis, who is expert on technology research and robotic automation. For instance, solar panels or wind turbines produce electricity just in regards of the weather conditions, but not in line with the immediate evolution of energy demand. Therefore they need to be covered by nuclear of fossil fuels.

 

"This time, the geothermal energy becomes Cinderella among other energy sources," said Mr. Kocis. According to him, this is due to what is today known as shallow geothermal, used mainly in heating systems and thermal water parks, but not in way of producing the electricity. This geothermal segment is insufficient in order to create the electricity.

"Only one percent of the Earth is cooler than 1000 Celsius degrees, and is only 0.1 percent colder than 100 Celsius degrees." In other words, the energy gained from Earth's hot core would exceed the global energy demand for more than several thousand times.

The main obstacle for utilizing vast geothermal energy is current technological level and available technologies. "With today's technology we can not calculate, because the borehole with depth of 5-6 kilometers becomes too costly and inefficient," says Mr. Kocis. On the other hand, anywhere in the world in depths from 7 to 10 kilometers, we can find sufficient heat, which is suitable for steam production and generating the electricity. In this regard, it is necessary to develop innovative technology for ultra-deep drilling, which would stop exponential growth of geothermal drilling costs linked to the depth of drilled well. Geothermal Anywhere‘s robotic drilling platform could be the answer in the future, closed Ivan Kocis.

Panelist discussed at the third annual conference "Common EU Energy Policy and Energy Security of Slovakia“. This event was organized by The Research Centre at Slovak Foreign Policy Association (RC SFPA) and European Commission Representation in the Slovak Republic. The venue was hosted by Slovak Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Source: EurActiv.sk (the full text available only in Slovak)
Photos: SFPA (more photos on this link)