HRL believes this permit to be one of the most prospective of the geothermal permits offered by the government in Land Release Area GLR2007-1. The prospect appears associated with Carboniferous age, heat generating plutonic rocks and associated fractured volcanic rocks in the Featherbed Cauldron Complex, the company said.
Two thermal springs have been identified in the permit area with recorded surface discharge temperatures of 42 degrees Celsius and 56 degrees Celsius. No previous geothermal exploration has been carried out in the area to test the potential of these geothermal fluids at depth for electricity generation.
The exploration permit EPG19 was granted to HRL for a five-year term. In the first year of the tenement, HRL will commence initial exploration work to sample and examine the geochemical composition of springs and water bores to investigate possible connections between the surface springs and a high temperature geothermal reservoir in fractured rocks at depths of up to 3.5km below surface. The exploration program will be funded from the company’s existing cash reserves.
Mark Elliott, executive chairman of HRL, said: “Our first project in Queensland is exciting based on the fact that we already have hot thermal springs at surface, indicating potential commercial temperatures at depths of less than 3km.”
