Work on new geothermal power plant near Truro set to start next year
A council planning committee has approved the site near Penhallow
Last updated 15th Sep 2022
Officials estimate a new geothermal power plant in Cornwall will generate enough energy for 11,000 homes.
Plans for the site at Penhallow near Truro were given the green light on Thursday September 15th, despite objections from campaigners.
Geothermal Engineering Ltd (GEL) says the development is estimated to take around three years from site preparation to electricity generation and it expects works to start in 2023.
It is also developing the UK's first deep geothermal power plant, in partnership with Thrive Renewables, which is currently in construction at United Downs, near Redruth and is on track to start producing geothermal energy by the end of next year.
How will the Penhallow plant work?
Similar to the project at United Downs, two deep wells will be drilled at the Penhallow site. The deeper of the two wells will reach approximately 4,500m depth and will bring the natural hot geothermal fluid to the surface, whilst the second well will be around 3,000m deep and will be used to deposit the cooled fluid back under ground after it has been used to produce electricity.
During development, noise levels on site will be maintained significantly below the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines, with the temporary drilling rig shrouded to minimise light and noise disruption for the surrounding community.
Once the power plant is operational, there will be no noise, light or emissions from the site, only a barn-like structure, designed to blend into its rural setting.
GEL says This expansion of geothermal power production will directly contribute to the UK's energy independence from imported gas and will support the nation's transition to renewable energy sources.
The power plant at Penhallow will operate 24/7, delivering circa 42,000MWh per year of green, baseload electricity - enough power for around 11,000 UK homes. GEL says it will save over 700,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions compared to a gas fired power station of the same output.
Statement from Geothermal Engineering Ltd
GEL says it will also work with Cornwall Council and local businesses to deploy the additional 20MW of heat energy produced by the plant locally, and develop schemes similar to the planned district heating network at Langarth Garden Village near Truro which will be supplied by the geothermal plant at United Downs.
Ryan Law, Managing Director of Geothermal Engineering Ltd, said: "The recent energy price shock has shown how much we need to develop home grown, renewable energy sources, particularly those that provide energy when the sun doesn't shine or the wind doesn't blow.
"The geothermal resource has been overlooked in the UK, as a source of both baseload electricity and renewable heat.
"As a country we urgently need to be accelerating investment in all renewables to fully support our transition to net zero.
"The United Downs project has proved that geothermal energy can produce baseload electricity in the UK and the GEL team are looking forward to expanding Cornwall's geothermal energy production to help secure stable energy costs, green jobs and to strengthen the Cornish economy".