Minewater heating and cooling: a 21st century resource for decarbonisation
With interest in geothermal heat recovery and storage increasing, the British Geological Survey alongside BEIS and IEA Geothermal held a mine water heating and cooling symposium to connect industry professionals from around the world.
20/04/2021 By BGS Press
The drive to decarbonise heating has resulted in investigations of abandoned flooded coal mines across the world as they offer potential for heat recovery, cooling and storage of heat.
On 10 and 11 March 2021 BGS, IEA Geothermal and BEIS organised a conference to share current research and lessons learned from both scientific projects and real life projects concerning minewater energy. IEA Geothermal were very pleased to be involved in assisting with this informative symposium, which quickly developed as an opportunity for the international community interested in minewater geothermal to connect. This free-to-attend conference had 500 registrants from 73 countries. Attendees used the Twitter hashtag #CleanEnergyFromTheCoalfields to join in the discussion, which is still in active use for those wanting to learn more and join our thriving global community.
500 people from 73 countries registered for the free event, with a mixture of academic, geological survey, environmental regulators, local authorities, government and consultants.
The conference
Day one
Brett Hagen (BEIS) launched day one of the conference by covering the policy and practice for low carbon heat networks in the UK.
David Banks (Holymoor Consultancy Ltd/University of Glasgow) discussed the risks, potential capital expenditure (CAPEX) uncertainties and made the call for integration of new (and existing) minewater treatment schemes with housing developments.
Gareth Farr (BGS) discussed recently released temperature maps of the British coalfields.
The session continued with discussion on practical issues including:
- opportunities in Newcastle and Gateshead (Jonathan Steven – Groundwater and Geothermal Services Ltd)
- thermo-mechanical modelling for heat/flow cycling in pillar and stall workings (Fiona Todd, University of Edinburgh)
- an overview of the Coal Authority’s approach to turning mine energy into a strategic asset for Britain (Bohdan Iwanskyj, The Coal Authority)
Day two
Steven Hayes (Hayes Tec Ltd) introduced day two with a talk on heat networks.
Florian Hahn (Fraunhofer IEG) talked about the Dennenbaum coal mine in Germany.
Mike Jenkins (Bridgend Council) gave a presentation on early stage feasibility and public engagement in south Wales.
Florian Hahn (Fraunhofer IEG) returned for part 2 of his excellent presentation covering testing at a demonstration site, including interesting heat injection tests.
Charlotte Adams (The Coal Authority) talked about smart systems for mine-energy schemes.
Alison Monaghan (BGS) concluded the event with a presentation on the UK Geoenergy Observatory in Glasgow.
There is obvious scope to link up geo-observatories across Europe to share lessons learned and to facilitate collaboration.
Q&A session
Hosting the conference via Zoom democratised the online Q&A session and we fielded over 130 questions. Regulation, CAPEX and customer acceptance were frequently mentioned, as was the desire to form a specialist interest group to continue creating opportunities for co-collaboration between policymakers, researchers, regulators and developers across the world.
Attendees were able to vote anonymously via three polls suggesting that minewater heating and cooling is a feasible solution for decarbonising heat (62 per cent), CAPEX is considered the biggest challenge for minewater heating schemes (27 per cent) and demonstration schemes complemented with scientific observatories are the best way to ‘de-risk’ the technology (86 per cent).
Results from three anonymous polls.
Results from three anonymous polls.
Results from three anonymous polls.
Due to the global interest in low-carbon mine-energy schemes, demand for this kind of conference, and a desire to continue talking and connecting with one another, we hope to plan a secondary event in the near future. If you would like to be involved then please email Gareth Farr.
Further reading
- Conference agenda
- Recordings of the presentations
- UK Geoenergy Observatory in Glasgow
- The Coal Authority
- Heat Store Project
- D2Grids Project
About the authors
- Gareth Farr is a hydrogeologist who leads the BGS mine-energy topic
- Brian Carey is the IEA Geothermal executive secretary and is based in New Zealand
- Brett Hagen is the Heat Networks Specialist (HNDU) at BEIS
Relative topics
Latest blogs
Unlocking key mineral archives at the Zambian Geological Survey Department
23/02/2024
Rachel Talbot recounts a recent visit by BGS Records staff to the Zambian Geological Survey Department, to assist in critical mineral data management.
Will 2024 be the Year of the Aurora?
23/02/2024
The Sun’s approximate eleven-year activity cycle is predicted to peak this year, prompting BGS scientists to anticipate that 2024 will be the ‘Year of the Aurora’.
Hungry like a wolf: new insights from old bones housed in the BGS museum collections
18/01/2024
BGS scientists are studying the diets of ancient British wolves and how they adapted to changing environments.
How BGS is helping the farming sector of Great Britain
17/01/2024
New legislation concerning soil management and technology in modern farming has led to an increase in enquiries about BGS’s Soil Parent Material Model.
Moving stones: faults, slopes and sediments
12/01/2024
Fractured rock along faults affects sediment movement on slopes with implications for the design of infrastructure.
Understanding nutrients in tropical rainforests
11/01/2024
Christopher Bengt talks about carrying out research for his PhD amongst the rainforests and volcanoes of the Philippines.
Linking geochemistry and health in artisanal and small-scale gold mining in the Kakamega-Vihiga gold belt, Kenya
09/01/2024
PhD candidate Maureene Auma Ondayo is investigating major and trace element exposure in the environment in Kenya, aiming to reduce exposure of humans to toxic chemicals.
The Geography Olympiad: Bandung, Indonesia
22/12/2023
School student Dion Thompson joined Team UK at this year’s International Geology Olympiad in Indonesia. We hear from Dion’s mentor Anna Hicks, before Dion reports on the Olympiad itself.
CMIC: critical minerals research review
21/12/2023
Matthew Reeves of Innovate UK provides an overview of the Critical Minerals Strategy, which sets out how the UK will go about securing its supply of critical minerals.
My role as a stable isotope research assistant
19/12/2023
Charlotte Hipkiss has recently taken up a new position in the National Environmental Isotope Facility at BGS and gives us a little insight into her new position.
Groundwater in Taiwan under a changing environment
15/12/2023
BGS’s groundwater team is part of a project to develop the first groundwater forecasts for Taiwan.
In photos: marine surveying a remote volcanic island
14/12/2023
A photo blog by members of the BGS Marine Survey team, who recently completed marine surveys around Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean.