| Abstract |
To achieve the Dutch policy objective to reduce carbon emissions by 49% in 2030 and 95% in 2050, a shift from fossil towards renewable energy resources is required. Within the Netherlands, geothermal energy is a proven renewable energy resource for heat, but currently only with a limited number of operating installations focussing on temperatures between 60-100 ï¹¾C in permeable aquifers. An acceleration of the development of the relatively young geothermal industry is required to make a significant contribution. It is predicted that geothermal energy could potentially provide around 20-25% of Dutch heat demand. The Dutch subsurface is well-known due to decades of hydrocarbon exploration and production resulting in a large public knowledge database of the subsurface, providing an almost ideal starting point for the development of geothermal projects. Integration of the knowledge and experience gained from the hydrocarbon era is very useful and needed for safe and responsible growth of the geothermal industry. A Master Plan Geothermal Energy Netherlands has been compiled by the market outlining the challenges to be addressed, the organizations that lead each challenge and the stakeholders involved in achieving an ambitious goal of 30PJ geothermal heat production in 2030 and 200PJ in 2050. Activities are distributed within 6 main focus areas: Improving profitability; suitable legislation and supervision; safe and effective operations; public support; innovation and heat (distribution) networks. In the coming years geothermal industry representatives will work together on each focus area to accelerate the development of safe and responsible geothermal activities. The Dutch government has already existing supporting measures in place for the development of individual geothermal projects ranging from a guarantee fund to a public-private partnership with the state-owned company EBN. However, in parts of the Netherlands, the amount of subsurface data is sparse and thus the uncertainty is deemed too high for the development of geothermal projects. The Dutch government has acknowledged this issue and is supporting several new data acquisition projects to reduce subsurface uncertainty. These projects follow the play-based portfolio approach, originating from the hydrocarbon industry. To investigate the potential of geothermal heat for industrial use, an Ultra Deep Geothermal Programme has been initiated. The development of deep geothermal energy projects is coordinated within this Ultra Deep Geothermal (UDG) Programme. Five consortia work closely together in the exploration and development of the first pilot projects and thereby reduces the risk of each individual project. Knowledge and expertise from the hydrocarbon industry is also brought into the UDG Programme to ascertain a safe and responsible development of the pilots. In central parts of the Netherlands, areas with high uncertainty with respect to the subsurface exist. These areas are typically densely populated with high heat demand but, to date, it remains unknown whether geothermal energy could be used. To further develop these areas, the Dutch government has initiated the SCAN ((a Dutch acronym which translates as; Seismic Campaign for Geothermal Energy in the Netherlands) programme. Within that programme, regional 2D seismic lines are acquired and geothermal exploration wells are planned to reduce subsurface uncertainty for future geothermal projects in these areas. By applying the play-based portfolio approach, better investment decisions can be made with regard to exploration wells and data acquisition. This will contribute significantly to the development of future projects in large areas. |