This document summarizes the energy and natural resources in Northern Ireland. It discusses groundwater resources, including the large Sherwood Sandstone Aquifer containing over 180,000 million liters of water. It also discusses the potential for geothermal energy in Northern Ireland from both shallow geothermal systems using heat pumps and deeper geothermal systems that could provide direct heating. Finally, it discusses the prospectivity of Northern Ireland for oil and gas resources, including both conventional resources in permeable sandstones and unconventional tight gas and shale gas resources.

1. Energy and our Natural Resources
Derek Reay GSNI

2. Geology and natural resources in Northern Ireland
Groundwater resources
Geothermal energy
Shallow - heat pumps (for heating and cooling)
Deep - direct heating
Geological storage of energy
Oil & gas resources

3. Dalradian metamorphic rocks
Carboniferous limestones,
sandstones & shales
Lower Palaeozoic
Greywackes & shales
Palaeogene Basalts
Permo-Triassic sandstones

4. Groundwater – there’s a lot of it about!

5. Groundwater prospects from bedrock and superficial aquifers

6. Silent Valley Reservoir
3,000m long
300m wide
10m deep
Volume of 9,000ML
Sherwood Sandstone Aquifer
180km2 Area
100m Average Thickness
1% Storage Capacity
Volume of 180,000ML
= 20 times more water
Groundwater resources in the Lagan Valley

7. Geothermal energy
Heat from the earth
Rocks are hot and they may contain hot water
They get hotter as you go deeper
Low carbon, sustainable and reliable energy
source, available 24/7 with about 90% capacity
Not just in volcanic regions like Iceland, also
used in western Europe
…and Northern Ireland?
Image from Stephens, W.E. (2010), Geothermal energy in Scotland:
exploring the territory and identifying the opportunities

8. Shallow geothermal energy
Suitable practically everywhere in Northern Ireland
• Temperature stable all year round at depths of a few metres
• Use Heat Pumps to raise temperature from ground temperature (10oC-
15oC) up to end-use temperatures.
• Closed loop systems - horizontal loops or in boreholes.
• Open loop systems - in boreholes; abstract heat from shallow aquifers.
Suitable for larger heating and cooling systems – potential for aquifer
thermal storage systems in Lagan Valley, Greater Belfast.
• New build and retrofit; borehole arrays e.g. Dublin IKEA
Heat pumps - an effective way to decarbonise heat
1 unit in - 3 to 4 units out !
Stable
temperature
all year round
below a few
metres depth

9. Deep geothermal energy
Selected locations in Northern Ireland are suitable
Sedimentary basins contain rocks up to 4000 metres deep
Permeable sandstones contain hot water in pore spaces
Water temperatures reach 90oC - 100oC at 2500 metres depth
Sandstones deepest between Ballymoney and Ballycastle,
near Antrim and Dungannon , and in the Larne area.
Can provide direct heating for use in heat networks.
Cascaded use – for spas & agri-food industry.
Large and efficient but expensive to drill.
Belfast
Antrim
Ballycastle
Larne
Blues & purples indicate deepest and hottest aquifers

10. City of Worcester District Heating Networks
Energy Master Planning: City of Worcester
Northern
University & City Centre
Southern & NHS
Heating & cooling for agri-tech industry
Worcester deep geothermal project - a model for Northern Ireland?
Diagrams courtesy of Liz Alston, Sustainability Manager, Worcestershire County Council

11. Energy storage in salt – Larne area
Salt bed up to 200 metres thick at depths ~1500m
Create caverns and compress…
… natural gas, compressed air, hydrogen?
Utility scale energy storage to use when needed -
Increase system efficiency & resilience

12. Oil & Gas Prospectivity in Northern Ireland
NI still dependent on imported oil & gas for over 80% of its energy
needs (power, heat and transport)
What is the potential for finding and developing local resources?
 Two areas:
 Northeast – Permo-Triassic sandstones – like the Irish Sea conventional gas fields
o 7 wells: 2008 Ballinlea well recovered oil to surface, gas shows
o Surface basalt makes it difficult to image drillable structures
 Southwest – Carboniferous sandstones & shales – primarily tight gas and shale gas
o 9 wells: numerous gas shows
o Reservoir rocks have low permeability
Social licence – are people happy to use oil & gas from overseas but not from NI?

13. Concealed basins
Conventional oil & gas plays
Source: Carboniferous coal/shale
Reservoirs:
1.Triassic sandstones
2.Early Permian sandstones
3.Carboniferous sandstones
4.Carboniferous shales
Caprocks:
1.Triassic salt/mudstone
2.Late Permian salt/mudstone
3.Carboniferous shales
Conventional Traps:
1.Tilted fault blocks
2.Anticlines
3.Fan deposits
Oil & Gas prospectivity in Northern Ireland - 2

14. Source (S)
Carboniferous shale
Reservoirs (R)
Carboniferous sandstone
and shale
Caprock/Seal (C)
Carboniferous shale
Traps
1.Anticlines
2.Flower structures
3.Basin-centred gas
4.Shale gas
S C
R
S R C
R
Oil & Gas prospectivity in Northern Ireland - 3
Unconventional gas with some conventional potential

15. Thank you

16. Discussion Question
Do you need large volumes of water for your business
and have you considered using groundwater?

17. Discussion Question
Do you see potential for heat networks in Northern Ireland?