The nation is advancing measures in its intention to cement the development and production of clean electricity from geothermal energy as another link in its energy transition policy.
(First pilot for geothermal power generation begins in Casanare).
The sample is in the three pilot projects that are scheduled and with which it is sought to establish the scope and limits of this technology, which consists of the production of electricity from the heat located below the surface of the earth.
The tests are carried out by the oil companies Ecopetrol and Parex in the region of the foot of the Llanero mountain.. With the national hydrocarbon, the Chichimene pilot is being carried out in Acacías (Meta). Its installed capacity is 2 megawatts (MW), and it will be able to generate 38,400 kilowatt hours per day (KWh / d), equivalent to the consumption of 659 homes.
For its part, Parex’s experimental project is in two initiatives: La Rumba, in Aguazul, and Maracas, in San Luis de Palenque, both in Casanare.
(With four pilots, the country generates geothermal energy and biomass).
Precisely, the latter is the first pilot that is being developed in the country, in association with the Medellín National University, and seeks to produce approximately 100 effective KW of electrical energy.
Thus, The system will be able to generate an amount of current of up to 72,000 KWh / d, equivalent to the energy that 480 families would consume per month.
Likewise, the second pilot project (La Rumba), has an infrastructure with an installed capacity of 0.035 MW, and a generation of 672 KWh / d, with which the current of 117 homes is covered.
The intention with the three geothermal pilots, initially for industrial operation, is to take advantage of the high temperatures and volumes of water produced in the extraction of hydrocarbons to generate electrical energy through specialized equipment installed on the surface.
Daniel Ferreiro, president of Parex Resources, explained that it has been possible to structure and develop the pilot (Maracas), whose main objective is to evaluate the use of geothermal resources from oil fields in the Eastern Plains for the co-production of hydrocarbons and energy.
The business leader also stressed that the project will try to promote the Llanos Orientales region and Also at the national level, new research, development and implementation initiatives that allow progress in the climate change strategy that the company and the country have.
Among the advantages of geothermal technology and that would be confirmed in the pilots, is its long-term economic savings, since it has minimal maintenance, is ecological, its operation is safe, reduces energy dependence, is not tied to the prices of the energy, is inexhaustible and has a long service life.
Likewise, among the disadvantages is the high price in the installation of the infrastructure, it could contaminate aquifers, it is not suitable for all locations, it cannot be transported and it requires a study of the geography, climate and energy load of the structure, such as factories or industrial plants, that want to develop it.
“The geothermal pilots will allow to continue diversifying the energy generation matrix in the national territory, as one of the main axes of the sustainable reactivation of Colombia”, highlighted the Minister of Mines and Energy, Diego Mesa.
(With its natural potential, Colombia seeks to be a leader in clean energy).
According to the Colombian Geological Service (SGC), the geothermal resources of the country, due to their geographical and geological position, are around 138.60 EJ (heat unit) and a power of 1,170.20 megawatts.
ALFONSO LÓPEZ SUÁREZ
