Dutch to drill 4000 meters deep for new geothermal project Trias Westland

Monday the first hole was drilled, also known as 'spud' in the oil and gas industry. It is a 125-meter deep hole at the place where earlier in June the protective layer was placed for the aquifers. After this 'shallow' hole has been drilled, the first section of the deep bore will follow. The next seven to nine days a hole will be drilled of 1,298 meters deep and with a diameter of about 60 centimeters. At this diameter it is important to fully remove the drilling mud out of the borehole. Every ten meters a sample is taken of the mud and the cuttings that come up. Based on these samples, the drill crew knows in which earth layer and at what depth the drill bit is. When the full depth of section 1 has been reached, the pipe is inserted and cement is injected between the borehole and the pipe to reinforce the hole.

After about 2 weeks section 1 will be completed. Then section 2 will follow with a diameter of about 43 centimeters to a depth of 2,559 meters. Section 3 is a borehole with a diameter of about 30 centimeters to a depth of 4.204 meters. Section 4 continues to drill to the Trias layer at a depth of 4,560 meters. This last hole will not be cemented in connection with the recovery of heat. The well-test is expected to take place in January 2018.

From now on, Trias Westland is in full operation, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The KCA Deutag drill crew is - in shifts - 24/7 present at the drilling site. Offices, a canteen and meeting rooms, for example for security meetings, have been set up for the drill crew in the containers on the site. The crew members who are off duty, are staying in a guest house in the neighborhood.