NEWS

16 December 2021

Geothermal Development Company CeraPhi Energy and UK Oil & Gas PLC (London AIM: UKOG) (“the Company”) is pleased to announce that it has signed a Heads of Terms to enter into a joint venture agreement to develop part of UK Oil and Gas Horse Hill site into a geothermal energy hub (“GeoHub”).
The GeoHub, currently at a conceptual stage, is envisaged to generate and supply more than 200,000 megawatt hours per year of continuous baseload, primarily as heat energy. The project’s first phase would aim to supply significant industrial end-users in the locality with 100% green heating and cooling plus ancillary green electricity and/or hydrogen.

The GeoHub concept centres around six new deep geothermal boreholes utilising CeraPhi’s proprietary “closed-loop” downhole heat exchanger technology, designed to transfer heat from the surrounding hot rocks via heat pumps to the surface. Unlike most conventional geothermal wells, the closed-loop system requires no injection or circulation of water within the rocks between boreholes, eliminating the possibility of induced seismic activity.

As in established heat networks, heat from the GeoHub would be delivered to the end user via a small diameter hot water pipe and heat pump system. Subject to necessary permissions, further wells and/or sites could be added at any stage to supply a wider spectrum of end users.

The GeoHub’s envisaged potential to supply continuous baseload energy with zero carbon emissions is fully in line with the UK government’s “build back greener” net-zero strategy.

It is envisaged that current oil production at the site would continue to the end of economic life and then would be repurposed to add further geothermal baseload, transitioning the site into 100% renewable energy provision.

Upon execution of the joint venture agreement, conceptual engineering design and preparation of a planning application are planned to commence in the New Year.

Karl Farrow, CeraPhi’s Chief Executive commented: “GeoHub will hopefully be the first of many, a scalable cost-effective solution for baseload energy providing the end user the cleanest and most cost effect long term solution to energy right from under our feet using a relatively small footprint, in this case, re-using and existing Oil and Gas site which really is a sustainable energy transition. Having already undertaking the initial feasibility study for the project we are really looking forward to getting started on the conceptual development phase and working with UK Oil and Gas on the development of this project.”  

Stephen Sanderson, UKOG’s Chief Executive commented:

“It makes perfect sense for the UK to harness the abundant green heat energy beneath our feet to heat, cool and power our homes and industry. The envisaged GeoHub’s weather independent baseload is firmly in line with both the UK government’s “build back greener” strategy for net-zero and the Company’s ambition to transition its UK assets into sustainable green energy hubs.  We look forward to working with CeraPhi to further define and deliver the project.”