An EGS/HSA concept for Singapore

Abstract

Hot springs are a good indicator for geothermal resources in Singapore. An Engineered Geothermal System (EGS) for commercial power generation would require 3 km deep directional wells in hot sedimentary aquifers (HSA) or in hot, wet, fractured granite and the generation of electricity from +150 o C hot water through binary cycle turbines with the ‘waste’ water being recycled down injection wells. Proof of concept for a 50 MW power station might cost US$ 19 million. Development costs (US$ 200 million) could be written off in 6.4 years after production started. Large corporations and the military could benefit from autonomous geothermal power sources (e.g. electricity, heat processing, district cooling). Several neighbourhood 50 MW geothermal power stations could provide part of the national base load with ‘renewable’, clean, green power generation of strategic importance for a country that is viewed as having no natural resources.