GeneSys

Country / Region: Germany / Hanover

Begin of project: October 1, 2002

Status of project: July 24, 2008

More information:

Project website: www.genesys-hannover.de

The GeneSys project of the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) and the Leibniz Institute for Applied Geosciences (GGA) aims at the development and implementation of new concepts for the direct use geothermal heat.

The location Hannover is an exemplary one: Target rocks are the formations of the Mid Triassic. In a depth of 3,300 m to 3,600m, these thick formations have a temperature of 120°C to 140°C. These rocks are a common type for northern Germany. In most cases, their permeability is not sufficient for the conventional production of hot water. Therefore, an artificial fracture will be created in the bedrock which acts as a heat exchanger. The heat energy of the produced hot water will be extracted by a surface heat exchanger and fed into a heating circuit. The cooled down water is then going to be injected into a shallower rock layer via the same borehole.