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THE PROJECT
There are two active geothermal wells belonging to the wells of the reservoir of Podunajská panva (basin), located in the city of Galanta. They were established in 1983 and 1984 with the aim to be the source of heat and domestic hot water for 1 236 dwellings in the residential district Galanta-Sever (North), a hospital and other municipal buildings including schools, kindergartens, house for pensioners and stores. However, due to lack of funds this goal could only be accomplished after the political and social change. Galantaterm Ltd. was established in 1995 and started its operation in 1996. The major owner of the company is the Galanta municipality; other shareholders are Slovensky´ plynárensky´ priemysel a. s. (joint stock company), Orkuveita Reykjavíkur from Reykjavik (Iceland), Nordic Environment Finance Corporation from Helsinki (Finland) and Slovgeoterm a. s. (joint stock company). Non-financial contributions made by the Galanta municipality to the company were both wells and a gas boiler room that serves for the dwelling district Sever (North). | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Geothermal energy covers the heat demand of bleed structures up to an average outside daily temperature of 2°C. At lower temperatures, the peak heat source of natural gas is being put into operation with the intention of supplementing the demanded amount of energy. This heat source also serves as a backup in case of wells failure. The total installed capacity of the boiler room is 10 MWth. The basics parts of the energy system are hence: primary source of heat - wells no. FGG-2 and FGG-3; geothermal heat-exchanging station; peak - reserve heat source; heating network in the residential district Galanta-Sever (North), heating network in the complex of the municipal hospital. Taking into account the geographical features of the city of Galanta, the heating period lasts from october to May and starts when the mean outside temperature drops below 13°C for three consecutive days. Domestic hot water is being supplied all year round. The company produced 26 310.28 MWh of energy in 2005. Of this 22 356.10 MWh was extracted from geothermal water and the remaining 3 954.17 MWh from natural gas. From the overall amount, 23 770 MWh was used for heating and preparation of domestic hot water (DHW) and 2 540.28 MWh was used for production of technological vapour. The following two graphs show the energy production of Galantaterm Ltd. in the period from 1999 to 2005.
The largest portion of investment costs was covered by a long-term loan from Nordic Investment Bank Helsinki (NIB). The loan was received by the intermediary of Slovenský plynárenský priemysel joint stock company and a state guarantee for loans has been provided. The term of loan maturity is 10 years since the year 2000 (20 instalments). Total investment costs reached 105 mln SKK (2 756 122.50 £, 1£ = 38 097 as at 2nd August 2006). The estimated payback time is 7 years (according to cash-flow calculations).
On the basis of a resolution from December 2nd 2006, the maximum
heat price for the Galantaterm joint stock company for 2006 was
set by the Regulatory Office of the Network Industries at In connection with the implementation of the project on geothermal energy use in Galanta city, some boiler rooms firing fossil fuels (mainly coal) were shut-down and consequently some less qualified working places also shut-down. But due to putting into operation a new, sophisticated and sustainable device, new highly qualified jobs were created. The public is regularly informed about the project through local and regional printed and electronic media. Representatives of Galantaterm company present the project of geothermal energy use in the city of Galanta at expert workshops and conferences. Partners of the project annually receive an „Environmental report”. Geothermal waters in the city of Galanta contain different gases that are being degassed in separation tanks. These gases are analysed twice a year in a special laboratory in the Czech Republic. In 2005, the quantity of NOx emissions stemming from natural gas combustion was 0.9559 tons, that of SO2 emissions was 0.0052 tons and the amount of dust particles was 0.0435 tons. Total CO2 emissions due to natural gas combustion were 1 013.5 tons in 2005 and the total CO2 emissions stemming from geothermal waters were 8.23 tons per annum. Total emission of CO2 from the main activity of Galantaterm Ltd. (with the exception of fuels for transport) was 1 021.73 tons in 2005. Compared with the position if Galantaterm used only natural gas for heating properties and no geothermal energy, the emissions of CO2 would be on average 5 500 t/y higher. Galantaterm Ltd. is paying attention to lowering the temperature of discharged geothermal water and is making efforts to gain other customers for whom the temperature of discharged water is convenient (e. g. swimming pools). The company also carefully monitors the composition of sewage water in order to prevent damage to the aquatic ecosystem of Váh river. The only problems within the frame of the project are related to economics, but were not caused by inaccurate assessments and calculations during the preparation phase. The problem is the inability of St. Lucas hospital - the largest consumer of heat and domestic hot water - to pay its usage. The hospital with health care facility regularly owes huge sums to Galantaterm Ltd. As a consequence of this, Galantaterm is not able to fulfil its own liabilities which resulted from its long-term loan contract and this can have a negative impact on the company, due mainly to penalties imposed by its creditors. In 2005 Galantaterm Ltd. has begun to research possibilities for an increase in heat production, an expansion of its activities and a more effective utilization of the source of geothermal energy. Currently the preparations for the connection of Galantaterm's heating system with the boiler-room of Bysprav Ltd. are being executed. At the present time, Galantaterm company is also preparing a project of extension of waste thermal water use for energy purposes in a recreational area with year-long service, mainly for the heating of water in swimming-pools by means of heat exchangers. All these projects are in their preparatory phase; their economic and environmental effect should be visible in subsequent years.
Galantaterm s. r. o. (Ltd.)
Tel: +421 31 780 4716 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Examples to Follow - Successful and Sustainable Energy Investments in the Central-Eastern and South-Eastern European Region - Energia Klub 2008 |
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TECHNOLOGY