Imperial Valley Geothermal Project
Geothermal power project in California
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Imperial Valley Geothermal Project is a complex of eleven geothermal power stations located in the Salton Sea Geothermal Field, along the southeastern shore of the Salton Sea in the Imperial Valley of California. It is the second largest geothermal field[clarification needed] in the United States after The Geysers in Northern California.[citation needed]
Imperial County, California
| Imperial Valley Geothermal Project | |
|---|---|
The J.M. Leathers Geothermal Power Station | |
 | |
| Official name | Imperial Valley Geothermal Project |
| Country | United States |
| Location | Near Calipatria Imperial County, California |
| Coordinates | 33°09′48″N 115°37′00″W |
| Status | Operational |
| Commission date | 1982 |
| Owners |
|
| Operator | BHE Renewables |
| Geothermal power station | |
| Type | Dry steam |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 14 units (11 power stations) |
| Units planned | 1 unit |
| Nameplate capacity | 432.3 MW[1] |
| Annual net output | 1,741 GWh (2018) [1] |
| External links | |
| Commons | Related media on Commons |
Description
Parts of Imperial Valley lie atop the Salton Sea Geothermal Field, a region of high geothermal energy with an estimated 2,950 MW of geothermal potential. Of that total, 2,250 MW are currently developable, while the remaining 700 MW would become available as the Salton Sea (a saline lake) dries up.[2] About 403 MW is generated by the existing power plants, ten of which are owned by BHE Renewables and one by EnergySource.[3]
Geothermal power and lithium extraction
The geothermal activity below the Salton Sea loosens up lithium that can be mined.[4] The California Energy Commission estimates the Salton Sea might produce 600k metric tons of lithium carbonate (Li
2CO
3) per year,[5] of a reserve of 3.4 million tonnes.[6]
In 2016, the Australian firm Controlled Thermal Resources (CTR) announced plans to build a 140 MW geothermal power plant and a lithium extraction facility capable of producing 15,000 tons (13,600 tonnes) by 2023 and 75,000 tons (68,000 tonnes) by 2027. The company hopes to create a major new domestic source of the mineral, which is a key ingredient used in batteries for electric cars and energy storage. The project is expected to be operational by 2023.[7][8] General Motors announced a strategic partnership with CTR in 2021 to secure a local supply of lithium. The majority of the battery-grade lithium hydroxide and carbonate for the Ultium battery will come from this plant.[9]
Geothermal power stations
This is a table of all constituent geothermal power stations.[2][1]
| Name | Units | Type | Status | Capacity (MW) |
Owner | Commissioned |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A.W. Hoch | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 45.5 | BHE Renewables | 1989 |
| CE Turbo | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 11.5 | BHE Renewables | 2000 |
| Hell's Kitchen | ? | Dry steam | Planned | 140 | CT Resources | (2025) |
| J.J. Elmore | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 45.5 | BHE Renewables | 1989 |
| J.L. Featherstone | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 55 | EnergySource | March 2012 |
| J.M. Leathers | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 45.5 | BHE Renewables | 1990 |
| Salton Sea 1 | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 10 | BHE Renewables | 1982 |
| Salton Sea 2 | 3 | Dry steam | Operational | 20 | BHE Renewables | 1990 |
| Salton Sea 3 | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 54 | BHE Renewables | 1989 |
| Salton Sea 4 | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 47.5 | BHE Renewables | 1996 |
| Salton Sea 5 | 1 | Dry steam | Operational | 58.3 | BHE Renewables | 2000 |
| Vulcan | 2 | Dry steam | Operational | 39.6 | BHE Renewables | 1985 |
| J.G. McIntosh | 1 | Closed loop | Abandoned[10] | 18.5[11] | GeoGenCo | — |
See also
