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Many local residents may not realize that the Imperial Valley is at the epicenter for the nation's geothermal energy industry.

The abundance of geothermal energy in Imperial County, and its economic impact, was a common theme in the fall elections.Many local residents may not realize that the Imperial Valley is at the epicenter for the nations geothermal energy industry. Local business leaders and elected officials are counting on geothermal energy as an insulator against the harsh economic downturn.

Geothermal Power plant at Salton Sea

With the president-elect's stated intention of pursuing renewable energy as a viable alternative to fossil fuels, it would seem that the time has finally come for an explosion of geothermal activity here. And that may happen. But according to one industry veteran, the process of drilling a hole in the earth, capturing the hot water that is there, and then transforming it into clean, renewable, reliable energy is long. Realizing the benefits from geothermal energy production may take years if not decades, and that's if plans for new plants are on the drawing board right now.

WHY GEOTHERMAL?

Vincent Signorotti has worked in the geothermal industry for more than 28 years. He worked for CalEnergy, the biggest geothermal plant operator in Imperial Valley. Currently, he's the Vice-President of Terra-Gen Power, a new company here in Imperial County.

While some of the advantages of geothermal may seem obvious, Signorotti pointed out other advantages the resource provides.

"It's a low carbon, environmentally responsible means of keeping the lights on," Signorotti said. "It's good for the environment, its a way to reduce greenhouse gases, to reduce our     dependency on fossil fuel ... It's a baseload resource, which means it operates 24 hours a day. The wind doesn't have to blow, the sun doesn't have to shine."

"It's a baseload resource, which means it operates 24 hours a day. The wind doesn't have to blow the sun doesn't have to shine." Vincent Signorotti, Terra-Gen Power

And perhaps most important for the region, geothermal energy means jobs. Signorotti said that on average, compared to a similar sized fossil fuel plant, geothermal power plants produce four to five times more jobs. He added that a 50 megawatt plant, which is considered average for the region, would employ about 20 full time employees. Currently there are 16 geothermal plants producing power in the Imperial Valley, more than any other place in the country. The newest one, Brawley North - Ormat, is scheduled to come on line very soon, according to Signorotti. More are planned, although they could be years away from coming on line. According to Signorotti, it takes about five years from the times a company applies for the permits to build a plant until the day the plant begins producing power.

Currently,  geothermal power produces about 340 megawatts of power here in Imperial County. One megawatt is enough to power about 750 homes, according to Signorotti. He believes as much as 2300 megawatts could be generated here.

"There is still a lot of heat in the ground," he said.

HOW IT WORKS

Geothermal literally means "earth heat" and that's exactly what the various types of geothermal plants extract from the earth. Imperial Valley is located on a number of earthquake faults, and that means thermal activity underground. Signorotti explained that a layer of porous rock located thousands of feet below ground contains heated water. Geothermal production wells are drilled into the earth, and the heated water is brought to the surface. At that point it can be dealt with in different ways.

According to the Geothermal Energy Association Web site, there are four different types of geothermal plants.

A Flash Power Plant operates under the principle similar to when hot water comes out of a shower faucet. As the water leaves the pipe, steam escapes into the air. A Flash power plant separates the steam in what is called a steam separator and delivered to a turbine, which powers a generator.

FLASH POWER PLANT - Source: Geothermal Energy Association

A Dry Steam Plant uses steam directly from the geothermal reservoir to run the turbines that power the generator. Signorotti said this type of plant is found only two places in the world, Northern California and Italy.

A  Binary Power Plant is able to produce energy from lower temperatures than a Flash Power plant. These plants reduce the emission rate from the power plant. A Binary Power plant uses the heated water from the earth to heat another liquid that will boil at a lower point. In the binary process, the geothermal water heats another liquid that boils at a lower point. The heat is transferred to what is called the "working fluid", and that boils, creating steam to drive turbines. There are several Binary plants in the Imperial Valley.

BINARY POWER PLANT - Source :Geothermal Energy Association

A Flash/Binary Combined Plant combines flash and binary technology. The flashed steam is first converted to electricity with what is called a  backpressure turbine. The low-pressure steam exits that turbine, and is condensed again in a binary system to produce more energy.

WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS

Despite all the obvious advantages of geothermal, Signorotti says there are also disadvantages to geothermal energy.

"The single greatest obstacle to developing geothermal resources are the extremely high capitol costs," Signorotti said. "When you develop a geothermal power plant, you are going to develop a 30 year supply of fuel by drilling all of your production wells, drilling all of your injection wells, connecting those wells to a plant,(and) building the plant, before you generate a single dollar of revenue."

The Geothermal Energy Association estimates the cost of building a 50-megawatt geothermal power plant at $2,800 per kilowatt, or about $140 million, Signorotti thinks that figure is low. He believes the cost is higher, between $4,000 and $4,600 per kilowatt hour, or around $215 million.

The upside is that once everything is in place, the fuel to run the plant, that is, the heat from the earth, doesn't cost anything. After a fossil fuel plant is constructed , the cost for the coal or natural gas to run the turbines will still have to be paid.

With the economy in crisis, and credit tight in the financial markets, its a crucial time for the geothermal industry here. Signorotti believes that if geothermal plants here are properly managed, they could provide power for the next 100 years, if not longer. It's a vision that the region's congressional delegate shares.

"There is still a lot of heat in the ground." Vincent Signorotti, Terra-Gen Power

In an interview with ImperialValleyLiving.com, Congressman Bob Filner (D-San Diego) talked about the the future of geothermal energy in Imperial County

"When we start creating an alternative energy economy, based on solar and wind and geothermal, Imperial County is in a perfect position to gain from that more than any other place in the nation," Filner said. "Here's where you can build the solar systems of the future and the wind systems of the future, and the geothermal. Already the biggest (geothermal generation) in the country is right in Imperial County."

Signorotti believes that as geothermal technology improves, the prospects for the most consistent form of renewable energy here in Imperial County are very bright.

"We are certainly not at the finish line in terms of having developed all of the process technology that is going to enhance production from geothermal fluids, (and) possibly reduce the overall costs, Signorotti said. "There is still a tremendous amount of room to grow in that area."

To access the Geothermal Energy Web site, Click HERE

To access the California Energy Web site, Click HERE