I didn't think there was much of a resource there but TEY and PTR sniffing around so maybe something worth testing. An excellent market in this energy poor nation - if they find anything.
Rock lying beneath Devon could hold the key to the region's future energy needs according to a Lib Dem peer.
Lord Teverson, a former South West Euro-MP, is to lead a delegation of energy companies to Whitehall to discuss exploiting the area's geothermal power.
He said that the granite found under the county has the 'most promising' geological formation for 'hot rocks' energy production in Europe.
This is where water is pumped deep down into the rock, and comes back to the surface hot enough to generate power.
While the Government had set ambitious targets for 'green' energy generation, geothermal power had not 'featured on the radar' said Lord Teverson.
The energy source is already exploited in other parts of the world including areas such as Italy, New Zealand, and Iceland where hot water, that is used to generate electricity, comes to the surface naturally.
"It is a tried and tested technology," said Lord Teverson.
"Geothermal power could be one of the South West's major energy sources in the future. The really good news is that geothermal power produces no carbon and doesn't blot the landscape."
He is heading up a group for a meeting with the Department of Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform to discuss taking the technology forward.
The delegation includes Cornwall's GeoScience Limited, two Australian energy businesses Torrens Energy and Petratherm, and Lord Oxburgh a former chairman of Shell.
Lord Teverson said: "The south west could be leading the way. The granite under our peninsula is the most promising geological formation for geothermal heat in Europe.
"Cornwall and Devon have some of the world's best potential sites for deep geothermal or 'hot rocks' energy production. This is because of our peninsula's granites.
"It means that water pumped deep down into these rocks will come back to the surface hot enough to generate power.
"This technology is already under rapid development in Australia, France, Germany and the United States; it is time that we used our natural advantages here in the South West and pushed this technology forward."
GeoScience has experience of geothermal exploration, while Torrens and Petratherm are both involved in the development of 'hot rocks' energy in Australia.
(c) 2008 Herald Express (Torquay UK). Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.
Source: Herald Express (Torquay UK)
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