Today’s post (21) Liberia has intrusive rock features with potential heat pathways able to be used to access geothermal heat resources but more exploration would be needed to see if reasonable well designs are possible.
- Part of the West Africa Craton, the Man Shield comprising two areas of Archaean and Paleoproterozoic rocks lies beneath Liberia. The Archaean basement has a granite-greenstone association with granitoid gneisses and migmatites, infolded with supracrustal metavolcanic and metasedimentary rocks and intruded by a younger igneous complex. A Paleoproterozoic volcano-sedimentary sequence the Birimian Supergroup surrounds the Archaean basement of the Man Craton along its northern and eastern margins. Kimberlite intrusions (dykes and pipes) are found in the NNW;
- Heat pathways in faults and fractures adjacent to these numerous intrusive structures are likely to allow heat flux closer to the surface for access by geothermal wells in either hydrothermal or petrothermal reservoirs;
- Further heat flux density exploration in these areas is necessary to develop opportunities, but the types of geology in Liberia have been seen in other successful geothermal locations;
- Clean, environmentally sustainable renewable Geothermal Energy would be possible thanks to modern, low and medium enthalpy Binary ORC power generation solutions. Good geoscience tools are available to help incrementally explore and de-risk the areas of potentially suitable heat energy sources before more expensive drilling is required;
- Very attractive Levelised Cost of Electricity (LCOE) is commercially feasible for some developments to help improve electrification, reduce reliance on carbon fuelled power plants, reduce energy poverty, and increase grid resilience for Liberia. Increased electrical supply will also support domestic conversion of raw materials including iron ore and other mineral resources to capture more value for Liberia.
