Highlights: Four additional Geothermal Exploration Licences (GELs 407-410) are offered north of Port Augusta, consolidating the northern extension of the Parachilna Prospect. Torrens Energy’s extensive landholding now the largest in Australia, bringing to 21 the total number of licences in South Australia, aggregating 9,800 km2.
Dominant position secured proximal to energy infrastructure, providing a potential commercial advantage over companies exploring in areas unsupported by existing power networks. Highly prospective geothermal geology with modelled heat temperatures of 200°C+ located at adjacent Parachilna Prospect.
Torrens project area
Torrens Energy continues its aggressive land acquisition strategy with the acceptance of GELs 407-410, north of Parachilna Prospect (Torrens Project Area), north of Port Augusta, South Australia (right). Torrens Energy’s current landholding stands at 21 licenses, for a total of around 9,800km2, the largest landholding in South Australia.
Exploration drilling completed by Torrens Energy in early 2008, to the south of the newly acquired areas, discovered high heat flow, indicating that heat producing basement exists below the anomalous zone which is open to the north. The newly offered GELs incorporate this corridor of high heat flow with prospective insulating sedimentary rocks, straddling the national electricity grid.
Parachilna prospect summary
Geothermal exploration drilling by the company this year at Parachilna defined the highest heat flow values reported in the vicinity of the electricity grid in Australia. Best modelled temperatures at 5000m ranged 230-260 C over an area of 800km2. This thermally anomalous zone is open to the north, highlighting the potential for a large new “geothermal field” north of Port Augusta.
These high heat flow values are comparable to those recorded in the Cooper Basin, which has traditionally been the frontier of geothermal exploration activity in Australia. Modelled temperatures from Parachilna are now incorporated into the new Austherm 04. The newly offered GELs 407-410 are in the heart of this major anomaly.
