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Hot water power to cool a city?
The new Western Australian Geothermal Centre of Excellence (WAGCOE) aims to harness low-emission geothermal energy to help meet Perth’s air conditioning, power and desalinated water requirements.
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A new centre in WA aims to make Perth the first geothermally cooled city. Credit: iStockphoto
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‘The shallow groundwater of the Perth Basin is an excellent source of low-grade heat which can be used for direct-use applications that people use every day,’ said Centre Director, Professor Klaus Regenauer-Lieb. ‘Our aim is to make Perth the first geothermally cooled city. We are working closely with geothermal lease holders, city planners and other stakeholders to advance the geothermal industry and make this vision a reality.’
WAGCOE’s research program will involve modelling low-to-intermediate temperature geothermal systems, delivering novel technologies for low-grade heat, and identifying deeper and hotter geothermal sources including hot sedimentary aquifers and ‘hot rocks’.
The centre – a joint venture between CSIRO and The University of Western Australia, in conjunction with Curtin University of Technology and the WA State Government – will also develop geothermal energy university courses and provide advice and consulting services to industry.
