A hydrocarbon exploration well from decades ago is being converted into a geothermal well

Decades ago, exploration for crude oil and natural gas took place in Mezőcsát. Although this project proved unsuccessful – they reached a depth of 1,071 metres but found no commercially viable crude oil or natural gas – we can now count ourselves lucky that, in the course of the work, they drilled through the hot-water-bearing layers of the Pannonian Basin, thereby effectively providing the small town with a thermal spring.

The thermal layers are being opened up

To make use of this, the city council has now launched a public procurement tender. Their aim is the same as that which Bóly has implemented in an exemplary manner: to convert the town to geothermal heating. As a first step towards this, they are seeking a contractor to convert the heating systems of the town’s 13 public buildings to geothermal energy, thereby partially replacing the current use of natural gas.

No new wells will be drilled for the project. On the northern edge of the town, some 600 metres from the lido, there is a hydrocarbon exploration well, approximately 1,000 metres deep, which was decommissioned back in the 1990s. The plan is to convert this into a thermal well.

It is expected that the well will supply thermal water at a rate of approximately 700 litres per minute, at a temperature of almost 57 °C.

They are building a complete system

The works are planned in two main phases: in the first phase, following a thorough cleaning of the existing well and the completion of safety preparations, the deep aquifers will be tapped; the well’s water yield and temperature will then be checked through purification processes and test measurements. In the second phase, special sand filters and a high-capacity submersible pump will be installed in the well, whilst accredited laboratory tests will be carried out to verify the exact quality of the extracted thermal water.

A thermally insulated, protective well house will be built above ground, in which state-of-the-art instruments will be installed to continuously measure water volume, pressure and temperature.

From here, the extracted hot water is channelled via an underground, thermally insulated pipeline to the heating plant to be built at the thermal spa, from where the relevant buildings will be supplied with energy via the new district heating network.