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Petratherm announces geothermal test results

Geothermal energy developer Petratherm has released results from a geothermal well injectivity test in South Australia.

By Isabella Kaminski

The Stage 1 injectivity test took place at Petratherm’s Paralana geothermal site in South Australia over the Christmas and New Year period. The geothermal project is a joint venture between Petratherm, Beach Energy and TRUenergy.

Petratherm says it was encouraged by the results of the test involving the Paralana 2 well, which saw successful fracturing of underground rock following the injection of water into the well.

During the geothermal injectivity test, sensitive monitoring equipment detected over 140 micro-seismic events during the injection; these events are 10,000 times smaller than seismic events felt in earthquakes. Events associated with the injection extended in excess of 300 m from the wellbore.

The next stage is a main fracture stimulation programme which will begin in mid to late March. This will involve a larger volume of water being injected into the geothermal well at higher rates. The aim of this is to create an enhanced fracture network at depth to help determine the location of a second deep well (Paralana 3) in order to establish a fully operational geothermal energy pilot plant.

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