Schlumberger to help create geothermal project development company
Schlumberger New Energy, a new Schlumberger business, and Thermal Energy Partners (TEP) have entered into an agreement to create a geothermal project development company. STEP Energy will leverage its partners’ expertise to develop efficient and profitable geothermal power generation projects, providing an opportunity to support a reliable supply of clean energy.
“Through GeothermEx, a Schlumberger company, we have acquired extensive knowledge of geothermal resource assessment and project design implementation,” Ashok Belani, Executive Vice President, Schlumberger New Energy, said. “By combining our geothermal, subsurface and drilling expertise with TEP’s experience in project development and risk mitigation, we will develop de-risked and streamlined geothermal projects on a global scale.”
“We are thrilled with this partnership,” Bruce Cutright, CEO of TEP, said. “STEP Energy will focus on quickly reaching our first milestone of 100 MW of geothermal capacity. The combined experience and expertise in drilling, reservoir identification and assessment and project execution provide an unequalled opportunity for the success of the new company.”
“STEP Energy will create a unique opportunity to de-risk and optimize the development of geothermal power projects, reduce costs and compress schedules. This will unlock the full potential of geothermal power generation globally,” Dan Pfeffer, President of TEP, said.
STEP Energy will benefit from the partners’ project execution, drilling, subsurface evaluation and digital technology integration expertise, combined with systems engineering, modeling, data analytics and machine learning capabilities. It will create new avenues for growth of the geothermal industry, while attracting investment from various financial institutions.
The new company’s first project is the 10-MW Nevis Geothermal Power Project on the Caribbean island of Nevis, which will enable the island to transition to 100% zero-emission renewable energy for its power supply. Additional opportunities have been identified to expand production in the Eastern Caribbean and in North and South America.
