By John Denny Observer Reporter
(Hamilton Estates, Nevis) ” Quite dramatically, the geothermal exploratory well at the Nevis 3 site came to life and the sound of steam erupting from the well could be heard all the way into Charlestown, just a few hours after Hurricane Omar passed by the Federation. “I didn’t know what the sound was,” said a Stoney Grove resident. “It sounded like a huge engine. At the time, I thought maybe it was a big emergency generator running because of the power outage.” The vaporous gold discovered in Hamilton confirms the 2.5 miles between there and Nevis 1 at Spring Hill, is a continuous geothermal reservoir capable of producing several hundred megawatts per hour of electricity, according to West Indies Power CEO Kerry McDonald. At 2,900 feet of depth the water in the well had a temperature of 420 degrees F. Because it is under pressure, it does not flash into steam until it reaches the surface. The big drill rig that will bore the large production wells should be arriving on Nevis during the first quarter of 2009. The drillers who have been doing the exploration are preparing to move to Saba in the next month or so to tap into a geothermal reservoir believed to be there. The latest target date for generation to begin on Nevis is January, 2010, McDonald said. Negotiations for the geothermal power purchase agreement are slated to start on Oct 29, Nevis Premier Joseph Parry said. He also said the negotiations would not be open to the public, but the public would be informed of the outcome.
