Deep Geothermal Wells: Technical and Commercial Feasibility Study

Our task was to investigate the technical and commercial feasibility of developing and constructing deep geothermal wells. These wells, situated deep underground, are engineered to extract hot water or generate electricity through geothermal energy.

The technical and commercial feasibility of using existing oil and gas drilling technology to efficiently develop and construct a deep “downhole heat exchanger” by connecting multilateral well bores with “feeder” and “producer” geothermal wells.

Client challenge

• Lack of capacity to conduct this study in-house
• There was a requirement to construct the geothermal wells using relief well drilling and electromagnetic ranging technology, which the client had no technical expertise on
• There was a commercial driver to side-track multiple wells from a single well bore, which the client had no experience of
• The location of the desired wells meant they had to be drilled through hard rocks, which are extremely challenging in terms of drilling rate and equipment endurance
• Unable to analyze and identify all possible risks, due to lack of experience and expertise

What we did

• Analysis and identification of suitable strategies for construction of geothermal wells
• Analysis and identification of suitable technologies that would enable the wells to be drilled efficiently and effectively
• Development of detailed recommendations for how to utilize relief well drilling tactics to connect the lateral boreholes being drilled to an existing well
• Cost benefit analysis
• Development of recommendations for cost effective, safe, and efficient development of geothermal wells
• High level risk analysis

Feasibility report (findings and recommendations) detailing

• Summary of risks identified for the development of the geothermal wells
• Relief well drilling strategy recommendations on how to optimize intersection tactics
• Technical equipment recommendations required for the project (e.g., rig, rotating equipment, drill bits, mud, cement, casing, cuttings handling
• Step by step process for well construction
• Cost investment requirements