IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES FROM CO-PRODUCED FLUIDS USING EXISTING DATA FROM DRILLING LOGS: WILLISTON BASIN, NORTH DAKOTA

With the current push for technology that will allow for greener power generation, geothermal power has become an attractive resource given its low environmental impact and potential cost savings. One specific resource is co-produced water from oil wells that are not currently producing, but can yield formation waters that are both high enough in temperature and fluid volume to operate the turbines of binary geothermal power systems. The data required to identify sites, i.e. bottom hole temperatures (BHT), latitude, longitude, total depth of hole (TD) in meters, the identification number, and the amount of water produced in gallons, can be mined from well logs that exist in various data systems.

Utilizing this data together with a Geological Information Systems Software package, one can optimize the search for an ideal location for a binary power plant. We are analyzing data from the extensive North Dakota Industrial Commission Database for the North Dakota portion of the Williston Basin, and creating a fully interactive map of western North Dakota with contour maps, orthoimagery, fluid production and other geothermal data plotted for each of the formations found within the Williston Basin in addition to a report on viable power plant locations.