In addition, SGP has been informed that Nevada’s Bureau of Land Management has accepted its lease unitization proposals for all four of its Tier One projects. Lease unitization gives SGP resource control, during exploration, development and production, over land that adjoins each of the Tier One projects and that is not currently under lease by SGP or other developers.
The BLM unitization approval affects a combined 47sqkm of currently unleased adjoining lands, for a total unitized and leased land position of 154sqkm on Tier One projects.
Earlier this month, SGP completed a program of 10 shallow exploration holes with a total of 2,140mts drilled at Reese River. A team of geologists from the University of Nevada, Reno is working with SGP to build a structural model of the subsurface that is expected to be completed in early 2010. The structural model, combined with all of the previous data, will be used for targeting the next drill locations.
Gary Thompson, president and CEO of Sierra Geothermal Power said: ” The Reese River exploration program was particularly helpful as it increased the size of the thermal anomaly and will help us to target future drilling locations.
“We believe that our short term geothermal exploration program, which is well funded with nearly $11m raised since August 2009 and $10m in matching grants, will go a long way towards attracting prospective joint venture partners and moving our project to feasibility.”
Paymaster is a district play geothermal opportunity located in Esmeralda County, Nevada near the California and Nevada border. SGP’s projects within the District consist of three prospects: Alum, Silver Peak and Pearl, having an estimated combined probability at the 90% level of generating 110MW of power. The company stated that Alum and Silver Peak are Tier One projects while Pearl is a lower priority Tier Two project.
SGP recently completed drilling the observation well 25-29 at the Alum project, within its Paymaster district. SGP stopped the well at 1,010mts, which was short of the previously disclosed target depth of 1,830mts. The highest recorded temperature in the well was 126 degrees celsius at 620mts depth. The drilling was stopped prior to the planned depth of 1,830mts because a temperature reversal was encountered.
In November, SGP completed detailed ground-based magnetotelluric (MT) surveys and airborne Z-tipper Electromagnetic (ZTEM) surveys at both Alum and Silver Peak. Preliminary analysis of the MT datasets reveals the extent and thickness of overlying layers of conductive sediments as well as the inferred locations of zones of potential permeability at both Alum and Silver Peak. A radiometric survey was recently completed at Silver Peak. Data processing and interpretation of all data sets into 3D subsurface models is ongoing.
SGP’s $10m in matching grants from the US Department of Energy allows it to obtain reimbursements for 50% of the cost of its exploration work, specifically $5m of reimbursements for Silver Peak and $5m of reimbursements for Alum.
In November 2009, SGP completed an airborne Z-tipper Electromagnetic survey covering 100sqkm at the Barren Hills project. SGP anticipates the receipt of the major project permit, the Environmental Assessment for Barren Hills, in second quarter of 2010.
