Exploratory drilling of two wells is scheduled to commence by September 2023 for a planned expansion of the Theistareykir geothermal power plant of national power company Landsvirkjun in Iceland. The expansion aims to add 45 MW on top of the current 90-MW installed capacity of the power plant.
Preparations for the drilling operations had already started since last summer. By early spring, the location has been ready for setting up of the drilling rig, which has now been completed.
According to Bjarni Pálsson, director of geothermal development at Landsvirkjun, each well will be about 2800 meters deep and will be drilled diagonally under Bæjarfjall. Drilling is expected to take around four months. Pálsson further states that the wells are exploratory in nature, as they aim to extend the resource area further to the south and to the east. However, the aim is to use the wells as production wells.
Drilling powered by geothermal
The drilling rig will be powered by electricity that is generated by the Theistareykir geothermal power plant, instead of using a diesel generator. “A drill of this type needs 3-4 megawatts, which is quite a lot. As a result, we are saving a significant amount of carbon dioxide emissions by using our own green electricity to power the drill,” says Pálsson.
This will be the first time that drilling will be done at Theistareykir since the power plant was commissioned in 2017. Although the target installed capacity will be at 135 MW, data from surface measurements indicate that the resource may be even larger, and may even support a 180-MW geothermal power plant.
