DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Transitional Energy — a majority women-owned, Indigenous-led geothermal technology and development company that turns oil and gas waste streams into renewable energy — today announced it has successfully generated electricity at an oil field in Nevada. Transitional Energy raised 100 percent of the capital for the initial pilot, making it the first company to produce geothermal energy at an oil site using private funding. The field where the pilot is taking place will be part of a larger project later this year using Transitional Energy technology and funded by a U.S. Department of Energy Geothermal Technologies Office Wells of Opportunity grant.
Leveraging the team’s oil and gas heritage, proprietary technology and innovative processes, Transitional Energy generated the renewable electricity from an oil and gas well operated by Grant Canyon Oil and Gas LLC. The energy is used to power a portion of Grant Canyon’s operations at the oil field, reducing total greenhouse gas emissions from their operations.
“It’s exciting to see the success of this pilot project, as it opens up a world of untapped possibility for geothermal energy development in the United States,” said Salina Derichsweiler, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Transitional Energy. “Just as the world is on a journey to a cleaner energy future, so are we. Transitional Energy’s initial goal with this pilot was to prove we could produce geothermal energy at an oil and gas site, and we’ve accomplished that. Next up is to optimize our operations for even greater results and scale them to provide an immediate solution that helps bridge the gap between fossil fuels and intermittent renewable energy.”
In addition to working closely with Grant Canyon Oil and Gas, Transitional Energy is collaborating with ElectraTherm, an Atlanta-based global leader in engineering low temperature waste heat recovery solutions.
“We are thrilled with the results of this pilot project and happy to see the success of our geothermal equipment,” said Matt Lish, Managing Director at ElectraTherm. “We look forward to working with Transitional Energy to bring this technology to the oil and gas industry and further our shared goal of reducing carbon emissions and increasing availability of baseload, renewable energy.”
Transitional Energy’s approach permits the company to develop geothermal energy in lower-temperature zones, unlike traditional geothermal development, which is restricted to hot spots in the Western U.S. The low-temperature capability, combined with its low-capital approach by leveraging completed, operational and abandoned oil and gas wells to create a hybrid energy source, makes deployment opportunities more cost-effective and abundant than traditional geothermal energy development, while helping oil and gas operators reduce their carbon footprint and generating renewable baseload energy for the grid.
Transitional Energy’s mission is to provide affordable and abundant energy that bridges the gap between fossil fuels and renewable energy. It has identified more than 1 million wellbores in the United States that have geothermal development capabilities.
About Transitional Energy
Transitional Energy, based in Denver, is the first majority women-owned and Indigenous-led geothermal energy developer in the United States, turning oil and gas waste streams into baseload renewable electricity. Transitional Energy’s unique processes and proprietary technology will permit the company to develop geothermal energy in lower-temperature zones. Transitional Energy leverages a combined 100 years of experience in oil and gas and a deep understanding of subsurface geology to integrate into existing wellpad operations while providing a service that allows operators to produce a hybrid energy source that reduces their carbon footprint and generates renewable energy for the grid. Learn more at www.transitionalenergy.us
About ElectraTherm
Headquartered in Flowery Branch, Georgia, ElectraTherm provides industry-leading heat recovery solutions utilizing the Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) along with proprietary technologies to convert sources of low temperature heat – such as waste heat and micro geothermal – into clean electricity, ready immediately. Our simple and effective solutions use hot water as fuel – increasing energy efficiency, reducing operating costs, and decreasing overall emissions – with no additional fuel consumption or emissions. Our commercially proven low temperature ORC systems utilize heat sources as low as 70°C to generate up to 150 kWe of clean electricity.
Supported by BITZER, the world’s largest independent manufacturer of refrigeration compressors, ElectraTherm is able to continuously develop industry-leading ORC heat recovery solutions such as our heat to power system, the Power+ Generator, and our net-zero cooling to power system, the Active Cooler. This partnership provides ElectraTherm the vast resources needed to provide world-class services and global support. Having shipped over 100 ORC systems to over 13 countries (with dozens more scheduled) achieving over 2,000,000 hours of operation, we are a global leader in low temperature waste heat recovery.
