Western Geopower To Start Drilling At The Geysers In February
VANCOUVER, Canada, January 21, 2008, TSX Venture Exchange Trading Symbol: WGP – Western GeoPower Corp., a renewable energy development company, today announced that drilling contractor ThermaSource, Inc., and rig owner Northern California Power Agency (“NCPA”), have informed the Company that mobilization of NCPA Rig 001 to the Western GeoPower Unit 1 project site at The Geysers Geothermal Field in California will occur in February 2008, following completion of the current obligations for the rig.
The permits to drill the first two wells have been received and the two wells have been top-holed with a 30” conductor set in each, ready for the rig set-up. Drill pad “A”, which will be used for the first two wells, has been resurfaced and access roads to all four drill pads have been upgraded and resurfaced. Western GeoPower has taken delivery of the wellhead equipment and downhole materials required for the first two wells.
“We anticipate drilling eight wells prior to the start of commercial operations projected for early 2010 at the proposed Western GeoPower Unit 1 power plant,” said Kenneth MacLeod, President and CEO of Western GeoPower. “Rig availability has improved over the past year and a second rig could be secured in the event additional wells are required to fully develop the resource.”
ThermaSource was contracted in November 2007 to drill the initial six steam wells at the Western GeoPower Unit 1 project site. In business since 1980, ThermaSource is a leading geothermal drilling company and project management consultant, based in Santa Rosa, California, close to The Geysers. The ThermaSource management team has over 90 years of combined geothermal drilling experience and is a respected member of the geothermal industry.
Independent consultant GeothermEx, Inc. of Richmond, California has designed the drilling program and will provide strategic management throughout the drilling phase. The wells will be directionally drilled from existing drill pads to intersect target zones where commercial steam productivity was encountered by previous production wells. The average total vertical depth per well is anticipated to be 8,000 - 9,000 feet with the maximum total measured depth expected to be approximately 11,000 feet.
The Geysers geothermal field, located 75 miles north of San Francisco, California, is the largest producer of geothermal electricity in the world. Commercial geothermal power has been generated continuously at The Geysers field since 1960, the present generation level being about 900 megawatts of clean, baseload electricity. Western GeoPower's Unit 1 project is situated in the south-western region of The Geysers field in Sonoma County.
Corporate Overview
Western GeoPower Corp. is a renewable energy company dedicated to the development of geothermal energy projects for the delivery of clean, baseload electricity generation. The Company is developing the 25.5 Megawatt (net) geothermal power plant at The Geysers Geothermal Field in Sonoma County, California, United States. The Company is also developing the South Meager Geothermal Project in British Columbia, Canada.
On behalf of Western GeoPower Corp.
“Kenneth MacLeod”
Kenneth MacLeod, President & CEO
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this release that are forward-looking are subject to various risks and uncertainties concerning the specific factors identified above that reflect the Company’s expectations and projections about its future results. The Company has tried whenever possible to identify these forward-looking statements which include but are not limited to, words such as “anticipates,” believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “plans,” “intends,” “potential,” and similar expressions. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and that actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The Company disclaims any obligation or intention to update or to revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Such information contained herein represents management's best judgment as of the date hereof based on information currently available. This news release is not for dissemination in the United States of America or to United States of America news services.
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