Resource World Magazine

a u g u s t / s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 6 www.resourceworld.com 61 grEEN TECHNOlOgiES Hydrogenics is pioneering Power-to- Gas – an energy conversion and storage solution using electrolysis. It integrates renewable sources of generation, converts surplus electricity to produce hydrogen or renewable gas, and leverages the attributes of the existing natural gas infrastructure. Power-to-Gas is a highly effective way of integrating renewables. It can provide a rapid, dynamic response to the Independent Grid Operator's signal to adjust to the varia- tions in renewable generation output. A Power-to-Gas facility is not restricted to any geologic formation because it can be deployed wherever the power and gas grids intersect. It is a scalable technology. Power-to-Gas provides the energy storage capacity in the terawatt hour range for sea- sonal storage capability. It can charge energy several days, or even consecutive weeks, without needing to discharge the stored energy. Unlike other energy storage tech- nologies, Power-to-Gas provides the means to both store and transport energy. By stor- ing hydrogen or substitute natural gas in the natural gas pipeline network and associated underground storage facilities, the stored energy can be discharged where and when it is needed most which results in a higher overall integrated system efficiency. renewable energy power plants Develop worlDwiDe Alterra Power Corp. [AXY-TSX] is a renewable energy company, operating six power plants totaling 757 megawatt (MW) of generation capacity including the Shannon wind project, British Columbia's largest run-of-river hydro facility and largest wind farm, and two geothermal facilities in Iceland. Alterra owns a 349- MW share of this capacity, generating over 1,600 gigawatt hours (GWh) of clean power annually. Alterra is also construct- ing the 62-MW Jimmie Creek run-of-river hydroelectric project in British Columbia, which is expected to be in operation by Q3 2016 (51% owned by Alterra). Upon completion of Jimmie Creek, Alterra will operate seven power plants totaling 819 MW of capacity and will own a 381 MW share of this capacity, generating over 1,700 GWh of clean power annually. Geothermal projects are located in Iceland, Peru, Chile, Italy and British Columbia, though, in North America, proj- ects focus on wind and hydro. Alterra's two geothermal plants in Iceland produce a total capacity of 172 MWs and a 23-MW-capacity facility in Soda Lake near Reno, Nevada. It owns the latter outright and the former with Icelandic pension funds. In April 26, 2016, Alterra Power's Icelandic subsidiary, HS Orka, announced details of a 5,000-metre deep drilling pro- gram at its 100-MW Reykjanes geothermal power plant. The deep drilling project is designed to test for high energy geother- mal resources below HS Orka's Reykjanes geothermal power plant. The hole is expected to be one of the deepest geother- mal holes drilled to date in Iceland, with expected temperatures in excess of 500°C and exceptional power production poten- tial. If the well is successful, the resulting power will be harnessed and owned by HS Orka. HS Orka will operate the project in cooperation with its consortium partners. Drilling is expected to begin shortly. Unlike wind and solar power proj- ects, which can be built in many places, geothermal works only where there is a suitable heat source, John Carson, Alterra's CEO, explains. "Iceland is a unique area where the strong heat of the Earth is very apparent and very easy to get to." Research wells drilled in Canada decades ago found the right temperature for geothermal, Carson says. In the zones that were drilled, though, there wasn't enough permeability in the rock around the drill holes for water to trickle in and turn into steam sufficient to power a plant. "Where there's temperature, one could pretty well be certain that there are good permeable zones," Carson says. Although British Columbia has no proven geother- mal wells, Carson sees potential to develop large-scale zones if the next round of exploratory drilling there hits pay dirt. Alterra's largest and most promising new geothermal development is the Mariposa Project in Chile, which Carson says could be the country's premier known geother- mal resource. Located south of Santiago, Mariposa has an inferred capacity of 320 MW and the site could produce its first electricity in Chile from geothermal sources as soon as 2017, after forming a joint venture with the Philippines' Energy Development Corporation (EDC). Exploratory drilling by Alterra has already identified a potential of more than 300 MW at Mariposa, in Chile's Maule region. The cash injection from EDC will finance drilling to test whether the geologi- cal conditions exist to support a geothermal power plant. John Selters, General Manager of Alterra Chile, says that a key advantage at Mariposa is its proximity to the transmis- sion grid. A line to Endesa Chile's 150-MW Los Condores hydroelectric plant, which has been approved by environmental authorities, will pass just 15 km from Mariposa, Selters noted. The focus is on clean renewable energy sources says Carson, "We really feel that we're creating something new that is dis- placing coal and gas-carbon-emitting generation, doing all the positive things society needs in a clean way. In addition to doing good business, we are putting a little less carbon out on the earth, and keeping things cleaner." n

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