Imperial Valley Geothermal Project

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Imperial Valley Geothermal Project
J.M. Leathers Geothermal Plant.jpg
The J.M. Leathers Geothermal Power Station
Official nameImperial Valley Geothermal Project
CountryUnited States
LocationNear Calipatria
Imperial County, California
Coordinates33°09′48″N 115°37′00″W / 33.16333°N 115.61667°W / 33.16333; -115.61667Coordinates: 33°09′48″N 115°37′00″W / 33.16333°N 115.61667°W / 33.16333; -115.61667
StatusOperational
Commission date1982
Owner(s) (86.4%)
(13.6%)
Operator(s)
Geothermal power station
TypeDry steam
Power generation
Units operational14 units (11 power stations)
Units planned1 unit
Nameplate capacity432.3 MW[1]
Annual net output1,741 GWh (2018) [1]
[edit on Wikidata]

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]

Description[]

Salton Trough area. The red lines are simplified faults. Right-lateral direction of motion of the transform fault is shown (pink arrows). The red rhombs are pull-apart basins; the northern one is the site of the Niland (Salton Sea) geothermal field, the southern the Cerro Prieto geothermal field.

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, 2250 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 and one by .[3]

Geothermal power and lithium extraction[]

In 2016, the Australian firm (CRT) 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.[4][5] General Motors announced a strategic partnership with CRT 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.[6]

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 1989
CE Turbo 1 Dry steam Operational 11.5 2000
Hell's Kitchen ? Dry steam Planned 140 (2023)
J.J. Elmore 1 Dry steam Operational 45.5 1989
J.L. Featherstone 1 Dry steam Operational 55 March 2012
J.M. Leathers 1 Dry steam Operational 45.5 1990
Salton Sea 1 1 Dry steam Operational 10 1982
Salton Sea 2 3 Dry steam Operational 20 1990
Salton Sea 3 1 Dry steam Operational 54 1989
Salton Sea 4 1 Dry steam Operational 47.5 1996
Salton Sea 5 1 Dry steam Operational 58.3 2000
Vulcan 2 Dry steam Operational 39.6 1985

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c "Electricity Data Browser - Salton Sea Complex (11 plants)". www.eia.gov. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "The Shrinking Salton Sea and its Impact on Geothermal Development" (PDF). geothermal.org. 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  3. ^ "EnergySource's First Geothermal Plant in Imperial Valley Lauded for Creating Jobs, Boosting the Economy, Delivering Clean Energy to 50,000 Homes; Second Plant to Follow". www.businesswire.com. May 18, 2012. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  4. ^ "Lithium will fuel the clean energy boom. This company may have a breakthrough". Los Angeles Times. October 14, 2019. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  5. ^ "California needs clean energy after sundown. Is the answer under our feet?". Los Angeles Times. January 22, 2020. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  6. ^ Cohen, Ariel (July 26, 2021). "General Motors Moves To Secure Its Own Critical Mineral Supply Chains". Forbes. Retrieved July 28, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

External links[]

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