By Dai Qi
The Xiongan New Area is gathering pace in developing geothermal energy, and more opportunities will be created for the industry, the Shanghai Securities News reported Tuesday.
Two Chinese officials in charge of the Xiongan New Area and China's energy administration both met with former President of Iceland Olafur R. Grimsson recently, to discuss collaboration between the two countries on geothermal energy development from technological and commercial aspects as well as the overall concept.
As a new type of clean energy, geothermal energy, together with other renewable energies, are inevitable choices for China to promote its supply-side energy reforms.
According to China's top-level design for the future, the geothermal energy industry is at the center in the building of the Xiongan New Area.
From the economic perspective, geothermal energy is an excellent choice as well.
As the research center for Hebei Province on geothermal energy, predicted the cost for its heat supply by the geothermal well is about 40 percent lower than that by the boiler.
The time span for cost recovery is eight to ten years in general, as estimated by the center.
Currently, the development of its geothermal energy is at its preliminary stage, and its related heat supply has been extended to the county of Xiongxian and a wide range of rural areas, according to the report by the Shanghai Securities News.
The energy in the counties of Xiongxian and Rongcheng is provided by the Sinopec Green Energy Geothermal Development Co. in patches, but that in other regions is produced via the geothermal well dispersively.
The Xiongan Group and the PetroChina Huabei Oilfield Company have both declared their involvement in the exploitation of Xiongan's geothermal energy, saying that they are working on plans and carrying out research related to the said field.
