Happy Monday! Welcome back to another week of ESC News Blog!
We love an update and back at the
end of February we blogged concerning Sage Geosystems plans to construct
a geothermal energy storage facility in Texas with the location unknown. Appears their first Texas project has a
location, if you would like more information on our original blog, please check
the end of February 2024.
Did anyone
happen to read The Houston Chronicle’s Business Section on August 16,
2024, their article titled, “Geothermal project slated for South Texas – Startup
leasing land at site of coal mine, power plant for storage facility”? The article speaks in regard to a start-up in
Houston called Sage Geosystems has announced Christine, Texas as its first Texas geothermal
energy storage facility.
The location of the geothermal energy storage facility will be on land
leased from San Miguel power plant and coal mine. Sage Geosystems will be leasing 10
acres from San Miguel Electric Cooperative which powers homes in rural South
Texas. San Miguel Electric Co-Op had
been searching for a way to provide cost-effective and dependable power for the
Co-Op’s clientele, and with the coal power plant slated to retire in 2037 they
were looking for a way to be part of the change which is coming over the electric
industry. The geothermal energy storage
facility is expected to be built and working by December 2024 with a final price
tag of approximately $14 million nonetheless they will then have to apply to Electric
Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) to be able to tie into the Texas grid and
are hoping to be tied into it in 2025. Sage Geosystems is expecting to pump
water into a reservoir and fill it when demand for power is down for renewable
energy, and when power is needed its valves will open and pressurized water
will return to the surface to turn turbines which will create power for the
Texas grid and the storage time is expected to be around 10 hours. Sage Geosystems is looking into using
solar panels to make power which will be put away for future use. This is good news for those who use the
electric from the San Miguel Electric Co-Op and its future as an electric service
provider to rural South Texas. If you
would like to read more of The Houston Chronicle’s article, please
click the link: ERCOT geothermal storage project built by Sage Geosystems (houstonchronicle.com).
If you would
like help in looking into how to update your liquids terminal and pipelines,
contact us via email in the blog and check out our ESC's website for contact information!
We hope you have a wonderful evening, and a great rest of
your week! Keep cool!
**Disclaimer: You may be charged a fee to read The
Houston Chronicle’s article. **