1

Tapping the Fire, Turning the Steam:

Securing the Future with Geothermal Energy

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means—photographic,

electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or taping —without written permission of the publishers.

© 2012 the netherlands agency

text by maya khosla published by the netherlands agency, the netherlands

for the embassy of the kingdom of the netherlands, jakartacollaboration worldwide fund for nature / world wildlife fund

2

contentsone Roots in the Earth’s Formation Earth’s Incandescent Heat Formation Crust, Mantle and Core Forces Driving Geothermal Energy In the Pipeline: Geothermal Energy Use

two Heat under the East African Rift Valley Olkaria The Great Rift Valley Geothermal Backdoor: The Wild Savannah Flowers for Another Continent three Gems in the Ring of Fire Steaming Rainforest The Underlying Geology Building Capacity Energy Security Thinking Globally and Acting Locally

four A Note on the Future Risks A Future for Geothermal Energy References Acknowledgements

12 4 5 7 9

1417 182124

262831333436

3839424445

1

Roots in the Earth’s Formation

White steam escapes its parent earth and jets into blue sky. The air is filled with great blasts

of sound rising from the high pressure vapor released through vents. The steam issues from

geothermal test wells at Hell ’s Gate National Park in Kenya, East Africa. The blend of untamed

gases, primarily water vapor with traces of carbon dioxide, is a report from earth’s depths where

vertical waterways seep through heated cracks and faults rooted some 3 kilometers deep in the

crust. Rising, the steam leaves no traces of dust, no stain, no haze.

one

2

Earth’s Incandescent HeatThe word geothermal literally means “earth heat” (geo is Greek for earth; therme means heat). Geothermal zones are areas of high heat within the earth’s crust. The crust is the outermost layer, ranging between 35 and 70 km thick in most regions. The mantle, with layers of intensely heated rock, lies directly under the crust. Located deep under the earth or closer to the surface, the depths where geothermal heat can be found—and tapped— depend on the thickness of earth’s crust. In countries along the East African Rift Valley like Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, and in Pacific Rim countries like New Zealand, the Philippines and Indonesia, the crust is relatively thin or fractured, containing deep cracks and fault lines. In such regions the geothermal heat, rooted in the underlying mantle, lies closest to the earth’s surface. The geothermal gradient, which is the increase in subsurface temperatures with increasing depth underground, is high. Water seeps down through the cracks and its temperatures shoot high as it makes contact with hot subterranean rocks.

3

« THE RiNG oF FiRE »

ASiA NoRTH AMERiCA

SoUTH AMERiCA

AUSTRALiA

ATLANTiC oCEAN

PACiFiC oCEAN

“Wherever you have high volcanic activity…you will very likely have geothermal energy available close to surface,” explains Stephan Singer, the director of global energy policy with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

Modern geothermal technology has found ways of tapping the steam and converting it into usable energy. Drilling the earth at an appropriate site will give rise to boiling water and steam. The blend surges up like a bold signature of the earth’s own creation in eons past.

Seated in the vast subterranean expanses, geothermal resources are considered to be renewable. The geological backdrop of geothermal energy goes all the way back to the earth’s creation.

4

FormationOver 4500 million years ago, our planet came into being as a gathering mass of molten-hot rock, fluids and gases flying through space. Meteors struck the surface and melted. Increasing gravity shaped the earth as it gained mass and spun in orbit around the sun. It was a time of intense, violent eruptions powered in part by chemical reactions and collisions with extraterrestrial matter.

Viewed from space, the earth would not have looked as blue, wrapped in wisps of clouds as it does today, but red and gold with the products of its birth. Magma from the surface cooled and sank hundreds of kilometers deep while the magma far beneath heated up, became lighter (lower density) and rose towards the earth’s surface. The cycle of rising, cooling and sinking down again, called convection currents, continued to circulate magma while the earth was forming—currents that are still active today.

We have only a handful of clues about that tumultuous period. Most rocks have melted and reformed many times over since. An amber-red crumb of zircon, which formed about

5

4400 million years ago, is a clock and thermometer of our ancient earth. Found in Western Australia, the crystal was embedded deep in younger sedimentary rock. It provides hints about the earth’s age, the forces of movement, cycles of heating and cooling that shaped changes for millions of years.

Crust, Mantle and CoreGradually over the course of over 2000 million years, almost half the earth’s age, its temperatures cooled. Three concentric layers, the core, mantle and crust, were formed. The crust can be visualized as a thin shell covering a vast, spherical mass. It grew cool enough for life forms to survive and evolve. The crust— earth’s uppermost layer including all oceanic and continental forms —is only about 1% of the earth’s mass.

Beneath the crust, heated zones span across an almost unimaginably vast area. The heaviest and hottest materials, primarily iron and nickel, are concentrated in the central core about 3500 km thick. The core itself is comprised of a liquid outer core of 2300 km thickness and an inner core about 1200 km thick and is located some 2900 km under the earth’s surface.

Heat in the core is continually being generated by radioactive reactions such as the splitting of radioactive uranium—much like the energy released by a nuclear reactor. Temperatures in the inner core are estimated at somewhere between 5000 and 7000 ° C—heat comparable to surface temperatures on the sun. Imagine a giant ball buried deep in the center of our earth, radiating heat like a small sun!

6

Despite high temperatures, the inner core 1 is not molten but solid due to immense pressure from the overlying layers. The outer core 11 is incandescent, molten rock.

The mantle 111 surrounds the core like a shell about 2,900 km thick. Much of the mantle consists of hot, viscous fluids that flow slowly. At temperatures anywhere between 500 and 900 ° C, the mantle continues its great convection currents—the currents that created and swallowed continental forms in ages past.

Convection currents within the mantle are engines driving parts of the crust against or away from each other, creating mountains, rift valleys, volcanoes, mid-oceanic ridges and geothermal hot springs. In some regions, heat from the vast mantle vents at the earth’s surface. We catch glimpses of its activity in hot springs and in the red-hot lava spewing from active volcanoes.

Today’s earth is still an immense source of heat that is renewing itself. Tapping that geothermal heat can be a sustainable way to obtain energy.

1 11 111

« th

e E

arth

’s L

ayer

s »

7

« Tectonic Plates »

Forces Driving Geothermal Energy The crust covering our earth looks more like a set of constantly shifting tectonic plates than a single continuous layer. Geologists perceive the crust as those plates floating on magma, much like a fleet of boats knocking against each other in a harbor. When the plates collide, one or more give way, subsiding under others in a process called subduction. Denser plates —most often the oceanic plates— sink under lighter plates.

The continental margins of the Pacific Ocean are among the world’s regions of active plate movement, where the crust is relatively thin. Regions of the Pacific plate are subducting under the surrounding continental plates. As a result, the sinking plates are crushed and melted by the tremendous interior heat. Masses of magma rise through the overriding plate, forming volcanoes.

Because of volcanoes and geothermal activity along the plate margins, the region defined by the Pacific Rim is known as the “Ring of Fire.” It spans across coastal East Asia, Papua New

8

Guinea, New Zealand, and parts of North and South America— all including zones where the geothermal gradient is relatively high. Tectonic activity along the plate margins gives rise to breath-taking landscapes, volcanoes, hot springs, geysers and fumaroles.

The great East African Rift Valley is another region where the hot mantle rises closer to earth’s surface, steered by different geological processes. The Rift Valley is a classic example of crustal extension (earth’s crust splitting apart). As a result of the splitting, magma pushes up against fault lines or areas of thinned, cracking crust. Volcanic areas are found throughout this region, where the continental crust gives way under pressure.

Geothermal heat is stored under the earth in rocks, water and steam. Both subduction zones and areas of rifting and faulting create zones of geothermal heat closest to the surface. The water from rain and runoff percolates down towards layers of heated rock and magma. This groundwater turns into boiling water and steam at temperatures above the boiling point. Such

trench

hot spot

lithosphere

asthenosphere

shield volcano

strato- volcano

island arc oceanic spreading ridge

9

groundwater is under enormous hydrostatic pressures. This circulating water—most often brine— is the conveyor belt for most of the geo-

thermal energy we use.

In the Pipeline: Geothermal Energy UseThe living world has used geothermal energy for thousands of years. Crabs, clams and blind shrimps line the hot hydrothermal vents deep under the ocean. Geysers spout forth in Yellowstone National Park where herds of elk and bison spend their winters close to the steamy hot springs and thermal vents. Japan’s snow monkeys, the world’s northernmost macaques, immerse in hot springs to keep warm in winter.

Many ancient civilizations such as the Native Americans, Papua New Guineans and Indonesians settled down around hot springs some ten thousand years ago. They used the

trench

oceanic crust

subducting plate

continental crust

« GEoTHERMAL PoWER PLANT »

power plant

magma

production well

injection well

geothermal reservoir

10

11

steam for bathing, healing and even for cooking. The Romans created steam baths using geothermal hot springs. Cultures all over the world still use geothermal heat today.

With technological progress, we have learned how to tap the earth’s geothermal resources to produce electricity. In areas where the earth’s crust is thin or fractured, reaching such geothermal areas is a matter of carefully managed drilling below the ground surface— to depths of 10 km or less. Italy first harnessed geothermal power in 1904 with a power plant that runs today. In 1926, the Dutch first drilled for geothermal energy at Kamojang, Indonesia— a power plant that is still active. According to Nyoman Iswarayoga, the director for climate and energy at WWF Indonesia, “Geothermal is one of the cleanest energy [sources]…”

The modern world needs electrical power to function. Industries have been hurtling their way through fossil fuel burning, leaving an environmental footprint that hangs over our heads with increasing levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases responsible for global climate change. In light of such impacts, investigating geothermal energy use is a refreshing way to go. The environmental footprint created by harvesting geothermal energy is a small fraction of the footprint left by fossil fuel energy.

With the replacement of fossil fuel energy by geothermal energy, carbon emissions fall substantially. “Geothermal heat pumps driven by fossil fuelled electricity reduce the carbon dioxide emission by at least 50% compared with fossil fuel fired boilers,” according to a 2008 report by Friddleifsson and others, who conclude “if the electricity that drives the geothermal heat pump is produced from a renewable energy source…the emission savings can even rise to 100%. Like wind and solar energy, steam-generated energy is also clean and is turned into electricity without the added transportation cost.”

Guus Willemsen, Head of IF Technology in the Netherlands, agrees with the emission reduction numbers. “Geothermal energy is by the far the best way to come away from fossil

12

fuels. It is affordable, so yes, it is by far the most important thing…that is going to happen in the next [few] years.”

In countries where geothermal resources are available, they can help meet a significant percentage of the total electrical energy. Electricity generated from geothermal resources is already higher than 10% in Iceland, New Zealand, the Philippines, Kenya and Costa Rica (Iceland virtually runs on geothermal energy).

Geological surveys help to identify the key features of a geothermal resource, which include its lateral extent, depth and rock structures. Once a potential resource is identified, it is investigated with exploratory drilling. Cutting-edge technology offers precision drilling, with which a range of subsurface regions can be explored with a single drilling location.

Technological advances are increasingly allowing for geothermal power plants to manage their resources for the long term. The extracted fluids may be efficiently replenished by re-injection into the earth—a critical step to avoid the depletion of those fluids over time. Those cooled fluids are reheated through earth’s natural heat and re-extracted, completing the circle.

“Geothermal is one of the most clean energy sources…The amount of land a geothermal power plant would need, with hot water pipes going up and cold water pipes going down again, is minor compared to what would be needed for open cast mining” declares Stephan Singer.

Unlike solar and wind energy, geothermal energy does not depend on the vagaries of wind and sun. All winds calm down and the sun sets. Independent of those factors, geothermal is more reliable than the other renewable energy resources. The steady availability of geothermal energy around the clock makes it a base load power source. It is also attractive because it is renewable and runs relatively clean.

With the immense potential of geothermal resources, many countries including the USA and the Netherlands are developing the technology required to harvest geothermal energy for electricity generation. In the future, the USA plans to generate about 500 gigawatts (GW) or

13

half of its total electricity from geothermal resources. The 2000 megawatts (MW) generated by geothermal energy in the Philippines is about one fifth of the total electricity generated for the country. Indonesia is currently producing over 1200 MW in geothermal and plans to produce over 10,000 MW by 2025.

Direct use of geothermal heat too, is growing. Cold countries use it to warm homes, businesses and even pavements, and warm countries are using it to process coffee, tea, sugar, and even to prevent fungal infections in greenhouse plants!

The future of geothermal energy now stands poised at the edge of an age of depleting fossil fuels. And while the clock of fossil fuels ticks away, the modern world is increasingly making use of the earth’s heat. In countries where it can be tapped, “it will improve energy security,” concludes Maria van der Hoeven, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency.

In the following sections, Kenya and Indonesia and the Netherlands will be glimpsed. A final note will set earth as the stage for future geothermal energy explorations—their potential, their promise and their light tread on our environment.

14

15

Landscapes of the great East African Rift Valley are a riot of colors, where life has evolved

around the gradually splitting earth’s crust. Verdant valleys, ashen volcanic cones, hot springs and

mineral-rich lakes—many of them rosy with alkalinity—extend along a great arc thousands of

kilometers long. Geysers steam the edges of Kenya’s Lake Bogaria, where the surface waters are

stained flame-pink by algae and bacteria that absorb their native minerals. More like salty icing

than plumes of growth, similar tell-tale pinks stain Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha, and even the

feathers of flamingoes, which wing from lake to lake in huge flocks and dine on the microscopic

algae. These surface colors are veritable signatures of the underlying processes that have dropped

parts of the lowlands to below sea level— over the course of eons. Not surprisingly, the fractures

and resulting rift formations contain a multitude of geothermal zones, some explored and most

still unexplored.

Heat under the East African Rift Valley

two

16

17

OlkariaThe use of geothermal energy in Kenya is burgeoning like the very steam that rises from the earth’s bowels. Vapors are condensed for domestic purposes, piped through greenhouses and buildings for heat, released in spas and, increasingly, used to generate electricity.

“Here in the Olkaria Geothermal Power Project, we are generating 150 megawatts with two power plants,” declares Geoffrey Muchemi, the development manager for Kenya’s primary power company, KenGen. In the valley below, steam curls up from Olkaria II, a new plant that was ten years in the making. Vapors simultaneously bloom and expand above the rolling hills and vast savannah grasslands of Hell’s Gate National Park. Olkaria II is now at full production. Some 105 megawatts (MW) of power enters transformers wired to feed into the country’s electrical grid, wires that run miles towards urban centers.

Geothermal power contributes 13% of Kenya’s total energy production, making it one of the countries with the highest amount of geothermal energy contributing to electricity generation. Muchemi and his colleagues are optimistic about bringing that value even higher.

“Our objective is to make geothermal our main source of energy production… In the next 15 years we are planning for 49% of the total generation to be geothermal. It is a clean energy and it is renewable…All the water we get from the ground we return into the ground.”

On the track towards this future goal, geologists, geochemists and geophysicists venture out to conduct reconnaissance surveys in high-potential regions. They return to discuss their conclusions and recommend the best possible spots for drilling exploratory wells. Drill rigs rumble in, scattering glassy-black rocks of volcanic obsidian on their way.

As the drilling progresses, the teams “cement the cooler areas and get the hot water from the bottom,” Muchemi explains, summarizing the initial operations that will eventually harvest the heated groundwater and steam. Like the scientists from KenGen, he has thought through the

18

traditional energy generating options. “Hydro-power is continuously affected by dry seasons. Diesel is an expensive alternative. And that is why we are focusing on geothermal… Although geothermal is big capital upfront, once you take the well to the generator there is nothing else you require. You do not have any other inputs. The fuel is the steam.”

Ideally, the drilling activities result in a stable supply of steam located under a layer of cap rock. Harvesting that steam, after separating it from the heated groundwater, is the relatively low cost work. Both steam and hot water are re-injected into the ground after use.

In Kenya, geothermal steam is not only used for large scale electricity generation, but also for smaller, easier to install units. These units can use the heat of the steam for green houses or small binary cycle electricity generation units, to offset the high costs of the subsurface studies required during initial explorations.

White columns rising from a test well spread skyward. Some 40 meters above their earthy origins, the unfolding edges stay suspended a moment before dissipating into vapors without a stain. If the new test cylinders release steam at a consistent rate, their power too

will be harnessed to set the turbines turning, feeding electricity into the grid.

The Great Rift ValleyUnique geological processes allow for efficient use of the earth’s heat resources in Kenya, where the total amount of geothermal power generated follows closely behind leading countries like New Zealand, Iceland and Japan. An aerial view provides a good clue about the geology. The East African landscape is etched with steep-walled rift valleys that run north to south in a great arc. All along these vast, flat valleys, lakes are strung in long, chain-like arrangements. These are the landmarks of a thinning continental crust, which began splitting apart some 25 million years ago.

19

Astronauts declare that the rift valley is one of the most prominent features from space. The Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and the East African Rift Valley are three arms of the same system of fault lines (spaced roughly 120 degrees apart). The three arms are the result of rising convection currents that originate deep in the mantle, bringing molten heat up. Gradually, the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden arms split open completely and the Indian Ocean waters flooded the two rift valley systems. Continental crust along the East African Rift Valley arm is the slowest of the three to drift apart.

Most of the earth’s valleys are shaped into being by wind and rain. In contrast, the origins of rift valleys lie in forces originating from the mantle, pushing the crust apart— forces which eventually result in the collapse of long blocks of land along fault lines.

20

The mantle is hot rock in fluid, viscous form. Under the rift valley, the mantle flows upwards like a massive blow torch in ultra-slow motion. Convection currents exert immense pressures against the crust. Over time, outpourings of magma have been flowing up, filling the cracks and solidifying.The crust has dropped along fault lines, creating the level valleys framed by precipitous walls of the East African Rift Valley system. The resulting fault lines through East Africa are some 3700 km long, spanning an area that includes Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Malawi, Zaire, Burundi and Mozambique.

The crust is pulling further east, away from the rest of the African mainland in a process of continental drift. East Africa is stretching at the slow rate of some 4 mm per year. It is an active system often paced by earthquakes. In January 2012, an earthquake close to Lake Rudolf set the ground and lake waters trembling.

All land is fluid when viewed through the lens of geological time. Even the toughest rocks crack and give way. These processes continue today. The land forms include many regions where hot rocks are closest to the surface and relatively easy to tap.

21

Geothermal Backdoor: The Wild Savannah in olkaria, the sprawling savannah is criss-crossed by a network of pipelines running the length of roads through Hell’s Gate National Park. A lone giraffe leans forward to nibble the topmost leaves of an acacia. The sound of its tread is muted by a plush carpeting of bunch-grasses.

The juxtaposition of wild, pastoral and industrial areas in the park is astonishing. Goatherds bring their goats through the valleys. Giraffes, gazelles, zebras, elephants and even leopards persist within and around the park. The wildlife drew the attention of the Kenya government and Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) after KenGen began operating the first power plant. The park was created three years later, in 1984. “It was required that we enter a memorandum of understanding between the government and KenGen and the Kenya Wildlife Service, KWS,” Muchemi notes. “We survey the animal

22

routes together with the experts in KWS and we either raise or lower the pipes depending on what animals cross along that line.”

It is the world’s only national park that also features power stations, which are concentrated in the western region of the park. Columns of steam along the canyon edge fill visitors with awe. The unique blend has also attracted geothermal specialists from other parts of the world.

“Everybody who comes here sees the animals within the pipelines areas…” Muchemi continues. “And this has encouraged other organizations like the Japanese government to come here to study how this has been done, what are the mitigation means...”

Many of the herds migrate through their traditional migratory routes to other grazing areas outside the park. Some animals choose to stay within the park, where the grazing—or hunting— is rich.

High above, an augur buzzard wheels around in widening circles, hunting while afloat with eyes locked on earth. A grey-backed fiscal (shrike) perches peacefully on a power line, unfazed by all the activity. Evening advances. The setting sun throws shafts of wine-red light through the clouds. Fading light is a signal to the grazers. A giraffe crosses under the pipeline and another joins it in the valley’s open grassland. Eland, zebra, warthog and guinea fowl descend. What appears to be a miracle of collective consciousness gathers them all together. And yet, nothing is out of the ordinary to the animals. Their lives are concerned with routine matters of fodder and safety.

23

24

Flowers for Another Continent

Close neighbors of olkaria are also making use of the geothermal power. The Oserian

flower farm uses geothermal energy to meet a rather a diverse array of needs, including

the generation of over 95% of the power they require. They are currently creating power

from Olkaria’s geothermal wells “because of their distance away [from Olkaria] or because

they are not very powerful wells,” says Bruce Knight, the engineering director for Oserian

Development Company.

Generating their own reliable power is a clear benefit for a farm whose lights help to

nourish acre after acre of plants after dark. The flower farm also makes

direct use of geothermal heat and even sequesters the geothermal

gas products. The growers need to protect

roses from the combination of cool air and

high humidity in the small hours of the

morning, when fungal infections strike.

“We control humidity to below 85% by

heating from 2 am to 6 am. We raise the

temperature in the greenhouses by about

4-5 degrees. It then avoids the dampness,

which means we don’t have to spray any

fungicides...”

Close to the equator, where the hot

climate holds steady for much of the

year, a blend of water, sunshine and

25

rich soils turns saplings into full-fledged plants at a rapid rate. Geothermal power, direct steam-

heat, and even its non-condensable gases help grow the flowers. The trace carbon dioxide from

geothermal wells is pumped through the greenhouses for use as foliar fertilizers.

Knight explains. “You have a little contingent called non-condensable gases that is primarily

carbon dioxide… it is a direct benefit for growing plants in green houses…”

Much of Oserian’s 124-acre farm is covered by greenhouses where rose blossoms with names

like Top Sun, Cool Water, Wild Calypso and Hot Blood grow powered by the earth’s power.

Flying flowers from Kenya to Netherlands, Paris and other metropolitan centers might sound

expensive, but the East African growers spend a fraction of the impact on the environment!

Knight is amused at our surprise. “We got a university to do a study to compare our carbon

footprint with the carbon footprint of a European grower. And we found that we’re actually 6

times lower— including the air freight!”

The greenhouses are saturated with light, humidity and the rich scents of roses. When the

petals are on the verge of flaring open, growers cut the buds and chill them. Some 48 hours from

now, the bouquets will arrive at market places ready to open.

26

27

Gems in the Ring of Fire

The Indonesian archipelago is a long curving chain of volcanic islands located close to the boundary

between two tectonic plates. Indonesia is an integral part of the “Ring of Fire.” Soils are rich; lowlands

are punctuated by tropical rain forests, plantations, geyser fields and some 73 active volcanoes.

Although any volcano can burst forth without warning, most give early signs. The surrounding

earth shudders. Mild tremors build— sometimes for days. Finally the volcanic vent opens fire.

Fountains of molten rock torch the sky with every known variant of red and gold. Ash clouds fly for

miles, darkening the days.

Two of the world’s volcanoes with the highest volcanic explosivity index known in recent history—

Krakatau and Tambora— are both in Indonesia. The Krakatau eruption of Monday, August 27,

1883, plunged its surroundings into a “midnight at noon.” Its dust remained in the stratosphere for

years of dimmed sunshine, haloes around the sun, and intense red sunsets.

Fortunately, modern warning systems work to counteract the toll of eruptions.

While a volcano’s vigorous explosion is typically over within hours, its subterranean forces know

no end. Long after the ash has settled, the surface lava cooled and solidified, long after the days of

sweeping dust and debris from doorways, plate tectonics continue to drive rocks deep and melt them.

Gradually, the lighter liquid rock rises towards the crust and changes landscapes. Where subsurface

rock is permeable and groundwater is abundant, the steam that surfaces can easily be tapped.

three

28

Steaming Rainforest

in West Java, staff members of the Chevron Geothermal Salak Power Plant walk along a forest floor inspecting a long, silver-grey pipeline about two feet in width. Bird songs echo through the forest depths where rasamala and oaks tower above and shorter rhododendrons crowd around them. The light is suffused with a hundred greens. These mature rainforest trees of Mount Halimun Salak, a national park 113, 357 hectares in size, provide home and habitat for the rare leaf monkeys and Javan gibbons. Both are endemic to western Java.

The pipeline directs geothermal steam several kilometers through a thick understory of dripping orchids, mistletoes, lianas, giant ferns and mosses in the park. The emerging pipes deliver steam to the turbines of Chevron Geothermal Salak, which generate electricity for Indonesia’s power grid. Hot water and condensed steam is eventually re-injected into the earth.

“The program for the next coming years is, by 2014 the government of Indonesia has plans to develop at least 3000 megawatts of

29

electricity from geothermal. And after that, in the year 2025, the government has programs to develop up to 12,000 megawatts of electricity from geothermal renewable energy,” says Abadi Poernomo, Chairman of the Indonesia Geothermal Association.

He frames the country’s long term goals with a wish of his own. “So hopefully the geothermal energy can fulfill the lack of energy in Indonesia, especially for electricity.”

It seems entirely possible. A 2003 law opened the country’s geothermal development to private enterprises. Indonesia has the world’s largest geothermal resources. It currently runs on 1200 MW geothermal capacity and ranks third after the United States (3200 MW) and Philippines (2000 MW). With its current program, Indonesia is expected to earn first place in 2015 when it has over 4000 MW installed geothermal capacity.

30

Today the major geothermal plants in West Java continue to contribute their share towards the country’s hopes for 2015 and 2025. With 227 MW from Star Energy’s Wayang Windu geothermal field, 377 MW from Chevron’s Gunung Salak geothermal plant, 200 MW from Pertamina’s Kamojang geothermal plant (a vapor-dominated system) and 259 MW from Chevron Darajat geothermal plant (also vapor-dominated), Indonesia is well on the way towards achieving its future energy generation goals. Darajat is the world’s first plant to receive significant income from the sale of the carbon credits earned by reducing carbon emissions.

Along with the future plans for geothermal comes an intense pressure to explore for additional geothermal resources within forests—and restrictions against such development. Abadi Poernomo believes it is possible to develop geothermal power plants in these delicate habitats while making sure the associated impacts are low. “As an example, Kamojang area is

31

Verlaten island

Lang island

sandbanks

outline of original island

Krakatua island

0 3 km

very green. We will not disturb any leaf of the forest, any leaf. You can look for pictures there, it is very green, and the habitat is still there…”

Nyoman Iswarayoga (WWF Indonesia) is particularly concerned about “promoting sustainable operations in terms of protecting biodiversity in the area where land clearance and technical operations are required for geothermal exploration.” With today’s rapid development of geothermal resources, there is a critical need to minimize the impacts on forests.

The Underlying Geology

Not every country can harvest steam with such ease. Countries like Indonesia and the Philippines, another world leader in geothermal energy use, are sitting on virtual gold mines of geothermal energy because, as Stephan Singer points out that “in Indonesia and Philippines— that is where the name ring of fire is coming from— much of the earth’s heat is easily available. It’s pretty close to the surface in those regions.”

Named for its concentration of active volcanoes, the Ring of Fire describes several seismically active areas around the Pacific Ocean, along boundaries between the oceanic and continental plates. The ring spans across New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, the Philippines, Japan, Russia (Kamchatka Peninsula), the Aleutian Islands, North and South America. Throughout the region, tectonic plates under the Pacific Ocean are subducting under the continental plates.

32

Under the miles of shoreline and lapping waves, much geological activity is in process in Indonesia. Located close to the southeast coast, the Indo-Australian plate is being subducted under the Eurasian plate at the rate of some 6 cm every year. It is a relatively rapid rate when compared to the average of 4 mm per year plate movement in Kenya, which some geologists compare to the rate at which a fingernail grows.

Subduction is happening along a long line between the plates, known as the Java Trench, which runs parallel to the Indonesian archipelago. The downward plunge of the Indo-Australian plate beneath the Eurasian plate creates melting rocks. At the convergence between these plates, earthquakes are frequent and intense. In an archipelago that has essentially been sculpted by volcanic action, the hot magma is located close to the earth’s crust in most of the over 13,000 islands. Like other strato-volcanoes, many of Indonesia’s

33

volcanoes are arranged in a long row visible from the air. Indonesia’s chain of geyser fields, hot springs and fumarole flows follows the country’s

curving chain of volcanoes. Volcanoes and hot springs have shaped the lands and subsurface rocks, where groundwater percolates through passages within the hot rocks and heats under high pressure. Where the rocks form water-tight chambers, the steam builds pressure until it forces water up in great spouts. Natural geysers shoot out of the ground like giant pressure cookers.

In areas where the geothermal gradient is high, heat is available at a short distance under the ground. Antonie de Wilde, lead energy advisor for BAPPENAS, Indonesia, compares the drilling depths required to obtain geothermal energy. “In the US you would have to go 10 Km. In Indonesia you get the same temperatures already with much smaller capital cost at 4 km high. Indonesia’s engineered geothermal systems can therefore be created at a fraction of the cost required to create equivalent systems in the USA.”

In the Kamojang Geothermal Field, one of the world’s few dry steam reservoirs, drilling depths are even closer to the ground surface—between 700 m and 2200 m underground!

Building Capacity Along with an exciting future exploring geothermal energy comes the need to educate professionals to meet those future demands. Dr. Nenny Saptadji from the Institut Teknologi Bandung returned from her own training in New Zealand to bring the Institute her vision of education. Her concern is that there are not enough experienced geothermal engineers to support the rapidly expanding explorations required to develop geothermal energy in Indonesia.

34

In 2008, Saptadji helped open a new program. “My idea is to have a Masters degree program. I wish to see students study about geothermal energy at school… We need to have a program which is not only in the class; we really want students to have time [for] practical work… So we hope that the output from the university will meet the demand of the industries.” Saptadji also makes a practice of gathering educators together, “basically to train the faculty staff from other universities, and we hope these faculty staff will develop a program in their university and that will help to accelerate human resource development in Indonesia…”

She believes that geothermal energy “may become sustainable with the proper management… In university, we learn the proper management with proper plans…”

Energy Security

Programs like the one at the institut

Teknologi Bandung will also help educated

youth to understand that harnessing the power

from geothermal resources comes along with a

35

package of energy security, energy independence from fossil fuels on which most of the

world still runs. Working towards field-based education will assist in achieving Indonesia’s

aggressive goals for geothermal energy.

“You reduce, reduce, reduce the dependence on imported fossil fuels—that is the whole

idea,” declares Lory Tan, vice-president of the board for WWF Philippines.

Indonesia has a history of producing fossil fuels, which still generate most of its power.

Once an oil-exporting country, it now has to import oil at constantly fluctuating prices—

yet another reason to choose geothermal power!

Rural Indonesians have been nervous about drilling for geothermal power after a gas

drilling accident at Lapindo village. It was an exploration that went haywire when drilling

for gas resulted in mud flows gurgling up and swallowing the entire village. Referring to the

Lapindo tragedy, Sanusi Satar, the advisor for Star Energy, says his company works with the

local villages before drilling for new geothermal power. “We get experts to talk to them, to

explain that [geothermal] is not like oil and gas.”

Satar has enough experience in both industries to know that harvesting geothermal

power is relatively free of effluents. “I spent more than 30 years of my career in the oil and

gas industry… [There] we have to maintain the content of the oil and gas before discharge.

In geothermal we don’t dispose water; we use…the steam. We can see that geothermal is

really a clean and renewable energy.”

The natural fluids from geothermal resources can last if they are re-injected properly.

Facilities like Kamojang (Pertamina) have noticed a decrease in the pressure of vapors

rising from their geothermal fields over the last two decades. They are working to increase

the efficiency of the re-injection process and maintain a sustainable system that could last

for generations.

36

Thinking Globally and Acting Locally

Geothermal energy is clearly distinguished from the oil and gas industry

in many other ways. The lack of polluted runoff and foul emissions allows the geothermal

energy industry to be a clean neighbor to tea, coffee and sugar plantations. And then there

is the direct use of geothermal heat. Although the country is clearly most ambitious about electricity generation, which is an

indirect use of geothermal power, indigenous cultures have been using geothermal energy for bathing and cooking for hundreds of years. Developing new ways to use geothermal heat is therefore welcomed by many communities and small industries.

Pertamina provides the residents of Kamojang with the geothermal heat they need to incubate and sterilize edible mushrooms, to turn freshly peeled cinnamon into dry bark and to roast green coffee beans. Using geothermal heat is a cut above traditional solar drying, which falls prey to the whims of weather changes. The alternate cycles of rain and sun typical of Indonesia are capable of cracking the beans that are set out to dry.

Direct use of geothermal energy for crop processing seems to be mushrooming out of many power plants. Wayang Windu is one such operation. Surrounded by tea plantations, the geothermal power plant is studying the feasibility of allowing their hot brine-water pipelines to be used for drying the tea leaves. The pipes transport hot brine overland before reinjecting it into the ground.

In Lampung, the Way Ratai Geothermal Field makes use of the shallow geothermal well to dry coconut meat and cocoa. Lampung also has the distinction of hosting the only traditional freshwater fishery that uses geothermal water! The hot spring water flows into a freshwater facility where catfish are reared to a large size. Local aquaculture farmers report that the catfish grow better in the mix of hot water and cold.

37

The Masarang sugar factory (Pabrik Gula Aren) uses geothermal energy to process cane sugar. “Our sugar processed in this factory is all by geothermal steam provided by Pertamina,” Theo Smits, the CEO of Masarang Foundation, points to a cylindrical evaporator with the girth of a double bed. “So this gives us the option to give the farmers a better price for the juice because we don’t have to pay that much for the energy we need for making the sugar.”

Theo’s brother selected a factory location close to Pertamina to ensure that production came from “zero waste energy,” as Theo puts it. About 6000 farmers bring their raw organic sugar in for processing. Gentle heat from steam is used to boil away 67% of the water from the raw sugar. While the product is still a juice, it “stops fermenting and will not get bad anymore so we can store it.” The rest of the drying, to powder form, is done by hand.

With the right blend of environmental impact assessments and management, Indonesia will be well on its way to achieving harmony between geothermal power production, farming practices and conservation of its unique tropical forest resources.

38

In Westland, The Netherlands, 4 farmers recently spent a million Euros to drill a well for geo-

thermal heat. Soon they expect to begin harvesting the fruits of their investment—with adequate

heat and power for flowers, potted plants and a host of vegetables grown in greenhouses. Inside a

greenhouse, leaves glisten with water and steamy heat rising as if from the microcosm of a tropical

rainforest. The tomatoes, capsicums and tropical plants are a veritable chorus of greens and reds.

Come rain or snow, the translucent roof and walls are designed to mimic seasons appropriate for a

different geographical area.

The prices of powering and maintaining the greenhouses are about to drop— once the

geothermal energy generation systems pick up steam. Teun Valstar and his 3 co-investors, partners

in farming, admit that the upfront investment was high. They made it “to stay ahead of the

competition…” Now Valstar says “I can expect base-load energy for 20 years…”

A Note on the Future

four

39

Risks

The upfront capital associated with investments in geothermal energy is comprised of 3

major sectors of spending. These are the initial explorations, the actual drilling and locating

the geothermal resource, and building the facilities required to harness power. Exploration

and drilling are high cost “entry barriers,” which are prohibitive to investors. In Kenya, “to

drill one well to 3 kilometers, costs about 7 million U.S. dollars,” according to Geoffrey

Muchemi. “For many people this is a huge amount to risk. Not knowing that you will strike a

good steam reservoir.”

Despite thorough geological surveys, drilling for geothermal can occasionally yield a

source of low heat— or no heat. The risks and initial costs make institutions hesitate about

40

drilling for geothermal power. Still, many pursue

geothermal energy on a large scale because they are

thinking ahead of the moment, they want to stay

competitive in the future, or because energy crises

draw them to a resource that will be more reliable in

the long term.

“There are some people who are saying, ‘it is

expensive; it is experimental,’ but there are some

people who say, ‘no, I’m looking 20 years down the

line,’” says Lory Tan.

Because countries like Indonesia and the

Philippines are sitting on the geothermal equivalent

of gold mines, they attract investors despite the

risks. Energy security and independence from coal,

oil and gas are the considered advantages.

Antonie de Wilde, lead energy advisor for

BAPPENAS, Indonesia, explains the long-term

vision necessary to recognize the benefits of

investing in geothermal energy. “You have rising

cost of fossil fuel and you have a constant price

for geothermal. So you now pay 15 to 16% more

for geothermal than for electricity generated from

coal. [But] the price of coal increases at least 10%

a year [while] the price of geothermal energy stays

41

CoAL / GEoTHERMAL

relatively constant. Within 2-3 years, your electricity generated from geothermal will be

cheaper than that of coal... And you will have made a significant contribution to reduce the

impact of climate change.”

Despite the high long-term returns in geothermal energy, the initial investment costs are

high. In order to promote renewable energy investments, Mr. Huub Cornelissen, Director

Energy and Housing at FMO, the Netherlands Development Finance Company, is working

on Feed-in Tariff investment funds (FiT Funds) that provide the capital needed to enable

enterprises to explore and tap new geothermal energy resources. The FiT Fund is a private

investment fund that helps to finance a geothermal project during its initial high-risk stage,

before the project becomes financially viable. The fund pays a premium to the independent

power producer (IPP) when the installation starts running. Once the geothermal resource

is located, the subsurface steam is tapped, turbines begin turning and electricity generation

begins to create revenue flows for the IPP. The PLN then buys power under a purchase

power agreement (PPA). When the PPA earnings exceed the price needed for sustainable

geothermal operation, the IPP can begin to pay back the FiT Fund. The investors begin to

earn returns on their investment.

compared to coal, geothermal can generate 2.5 times more employment

42

A Future for Geothermal Energy

There is much research to be done. Dedicated field-based research is anticipated to

improve the existing technology in geothermal explorations. Referring to the future potential

of geothermal energy, Maria van der Hoeven, executive director of the International Energy

Agency states that “we have to develop the technology.”

With improved technology, the risks and costs of investing in geothermal energy are

likely to drop. For example, the capital, operation and maintenance costs of geothermal energy

have dropped to less than half their previous amounts in a 25-year period, along with advances

in geothermal technology. With continued advances, costs are expected to fall further and

performance is expected to improve.

One of the world’s fast growing users of geothermal energy, the Netherlands geothermal

industry has made large investments in research. Geologists and engineers are now able to

fine-tune their geothermal exploration work and use modeling tools that effectively drop the

risks associated with investments in geothermal energy. Dutch farmers like Valstar can be fairly

confident that their drilling efforts will succeed in reaching the geothermal resources they seek

to tap.

Guus Willemsen, Head of IF Technology in the Netherlands is also thinking in the long

term. “Oil and gas is finishing up…so we need to look for alternative sources of energy,” he says.

“We think there’s still enough potential to explore geothermal, so… costs will stay rather flat for

the coming years.”

Geothermal energy is a relatively constant resource in regions where it is readily available.

The power sources, hot water and steam, can last for decades if the fluid re-injection methods are

carefully deployed. As a base-load power source, it can readily replace fossil fuel power sources.

43

44

referencesCoenraads Robert Raymond and John I. Koivula. Geologica: Earth’s geological past. 2007. Edited by Barnard L. F. Doig, C. Etteridge, H. Jackson, D. Nixon, A. Savage and M. Taylor. Millenium House, Australia.

Fridleifsson, I.B., R. Bertani, E. Huenges, J. W. Lund, A. Ragnarsson, and L. Rybach 2008. The possible role and contribution of geothermal energy to the mitigation of climate change. In: IPCC Scoping Meeting on Renewable Energy Sources, Proceedings, Luebeck, Germany, 20-25 January 2008. Edited by O. Hohmeyer and T. Trittin. 59-80.

Goldstein, B., G. Hiriart, R. Bertani, C. Bromley, L. Gutierrez-Negrin, E. Huenges, H. Muraoka, A. Ragnarsson,J. Tester, V. Zui, 2011: Geothermal Energy. In IPCC

Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change Mitigation. Edited by O. Edenhofer, R. Pichs-Madruga, Y. Sokona, K. Seyboth, P. Matschoss, S. Kadner, T. Zwickel, P. Eickemeier, G. Hansen, S. Schlomer, C. Von Stechow. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA.

Schilling, M.A., Esmundo, M., Technology S-curves in renewable energy alternatives: Analysis and implications for industry and government. Energy Policy (2009), doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2009.01.004

Wahjosoedibjo1 A. and M. Hasan. 2012. Geothermal Fund for Hastening the Development of Indonesia’s Geothermal Resources. Proceedings, Thirty-Seventh Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California, January 30 - February 1.

In a time of depleting fossil fuels, geothermal resources can be used to generate a steady

supply of electricity. The emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases are minimal compared

to those from the burning of fossil fuels, which are added benefits.

Global energy needs are growing. The use of geothermal energy may be capable of rising

to meet that demand. All around the Ring of Fire and beyond, countries are making efforts

to bring geothermal energy use up to higher levels.

45

acknowledgementsMy sincere thanks to Mayank Jain and Himanshu Kulkarni for invaluable comments. The interviews with Maria van der Hoeven, Antonie de Wilde, Stephan Singer, Guus Willemsen, Geoffrey Muchemi, Bruce Knight, Rafael Senga, Nyoman Iswarayoga, Abadi Poernomo, Nenny Saptadji, Sanusi Satar, Lory Tan, Huub Cornellisen, Alimin Ginting and Theo Smits were greatly inspiring.

46

in sincere gratitude

Maria van der Hoeven (International Energy Agency)Indra Sari Wardhani (WWF, Indonesia)Chris Ng (WWF, Philippines)Prasasti Asandhimitra (Chevron Geothermal, Indonesia)Suryantini (ITB, Indonesia)Slamet Ryadhi (Pertamina Geothermal Energy, Indonesia)Montty Girianna (BAPPENAS, Indonesia)Geoffrey Muchemi (KenGen, Kenya)Bruce Knight (Oserian, Kenya)Guus Willemsen (IF Technology, The Netherlands)Huub Cornellisen (FMO, The Netherlands)Georges Beukering (FMO, The Netherlands)Milou Beereport (International Energy Agency)Greg Frost (International Energy Agency)

lead advisor Antonie de Wilde

project manager Marcel Raats

text and editing Maya Khosla

photo editing Sanjay Barnela

lead coordinator Sanjay Barnela

photography Sanjay Barnela Chris Ng Samreen Farooqui Maya Khosla

illustration Anitha Balachandran

graphic design Siddhartha Chatterjee www.seechange.in

printing Archana

distribution Agentschap NL & WWF

production agency Moving Images d3 / 3425, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi 110 070, India movingimagesindia@gmail.com www.movingimagesindia.com

This publication and the accompanying video documentary was made possible with the support of Government of the Netherlands, through The Royal Netherlands Embassy in Jakarta

Tapping the Fire, Turning the Steam

© copyright 2012 Agentschap NL, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Netherlands and The Royal Netherlands Embassy, Jakarta