HS Orka, subsidiary of Magma Energy, has signed a power purchase agreement with Iceland Silica Corporation which is to purchase 30 MW of geothermal power over a period of almost two years. Starting from May 1, 2013, Iceland Silica will be purchasing power for its new silica metal production facility, still being developed at Helguvik, Iceland. The power purchase agreement ends on December 31, 2015.
Ormat Technologies announced the company has started up the 15 MW Jersey Valley geothermal power plant, in Nevada (USA). The company touts this project as the only geothermal power project that was successfully completed and brought online in the US in 2010.
GTherm is reported to be involved in negotiations for a 12 MW geothermal power project in Costa Rica. The company is negotiating with Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) for this pilot project, which would open the geothermal development potential in this Latin American country. Costa Rica has rich geothermal energy resources in the subsoil.
Enel Green Power (EGP) is going to cooperate with Turkish industrial group Uzun on exploring geothermal potential in Turkey. The companies will have access to a package of some 142 licenses. The Turkish government is planning to install about 600 MW of geothermal energy capacity by 2015.
Raser Technologies announced the company has begun drilling the first production well at the Lightning Dock geothermal development location, which is estimated to be able to produce about 15 MW of power generating capacity for sale.
Costa Rica is no stranger to geothermal activity with many volcanoes scattered along the country's spine.
Costa Rica has abundant geothermal energy resources, but only about 35 MW will come from this energy source by 2016, compared to the total of about 4 GW of power capacity the country plans to have installed by that year. This represents only about a 2% share of geothermal in the country's energy portfolio. The 35 MW will come from the Pailas geothermal power plant, which is expected to start commercial operation in 2012.
Ormat Technologies announced the company has restracted its application for loan guarantees from the US Department of Energy. More precisely, the company is not going to use Part II of the DoE loan guarantee program for the Wister, CD-4 and Dead Horse Wells geothermal projects, currently being constructed in Nevada and California.
Contact Energy (New Zealand), in majority ownership of Origin Energy (Australia), announced the company has been given final approval to proceed with the Tauhara 2 geothermal project. The final decision grants the company all the consents it applied for earlier.
Ormat Technologies announced the company's San Pablo II geothermal exploration concession in Chile has been granted. The site is located on top of 26,000 acres of land north of the San Pablo/San Pedro twin-volcanic complex. The concession is near existing roads and copper mines, which could be offtakers of generated power at the geothermal site. Following this development, the company will launch testing and feasibility assessments for commercial geothermal power development. If this proves to be positive, Ormat will apply for an exploitation concession.
Enel Green Power announced the start of power generation at another geothermal energy facility in the province of Siena. The Chiusdano geothermal power plant adds another 20 MW of geothermal potential to the company's portfolio. It will be able to generate clean power for about 55,000 average households. The previously started Radicondoli 2 geothermal power plant, in early November, also has 20 MW of installed capacity.
