Technische Erschließung des Untergrunds

In addition to exploratory drilling for data collection and evaluation of the subsurface, drilling for development and utilization is the most important measure for implementing geothermal, underground storage, and CCS projects. The planning and design of production and injection wells is based on feasibility studies, modeling, and simulation work, and is often prepared by exploratory drilling and geophysical measurement campaigns.

Our drilling engineers plan and support your drilling projects along the entire value chain, accompany all relevant approval procedures, and ensure the integrity of the wells. Shallow to medium-depth wells up to 1000 m deep can also be drilled by our own drilling team using the Fraunhofer IEG Bo.Rex, which can operate even in confined spaces. In cooperation with our energy engineers, the boreholes can then be developed into production or injection wells or geothermal probes, tested for commissioning, and connected to your infrastructure.

Our experts at Fraunhofer IEG offer you a borehole integrity logging service and evaluations of geophysical borehole data. In cooperation with the DMT Group, we offer a comprehensive concept for casing integrity services, including logging, interpretation, and evaluation of boreholes. In addition, selected Fraunhofer IEG employees are recognized experts in wellbore integrity for the Lower Saxony State Office for Mining, Energy, and Geology. In addition to geophysical wellbore evaluation, we support you in the preparation of geophysical logging campaigns, technical tenders, and market research. We work with professional, commercial geophysical logging software, our own laboratory operations, and borehole measuring devices.

To increase production, upgrade existing production wells, and enhance reservoirs, our drilling technology experts have developed and successfully implemented the innovative Micro Turbine Drilling (MTD®) technology. MTD® is a mechanical drilling method for drilling micro sidetracks (e.g., 2" or smaller) from an existing main well into the surrounding rock. It can be used to drill through all types of rock, from soft sedimentary rock to extremely hard magmatic rock (e.g., granite). It is a surgical and minimally invasive procedure that represents a low-risk and gentle alternative to hydraulic stimulation (fracking) without major, uncontrolled interventions in the subsurface.

Our drilling engineers develop, test, and evaluate new drilling methods and improve established ones. We offer services in the field of all conventional drilling tools and methods, based on both jointed pipe and coiled tubing technology. In addition, methods such as DTH percussion drilling techniques and composite coils are being newly developed and further refined. Future, innovative, thermally based drilling technologies and methods such as laser, plasma, electrical impulses, spallation, and projectile/impact drilling are currently being developed and introduced to the market in collaboration with industry. In addition, so-called stimulation processes, i.e., the connection of production wells to a surrounding reservoir, are being developed and implemented. These include innovative high-pressure jetting processes and controls, such as rotating and pulsation nozzles and the MTD micro-drilling process developed in-house at Fraunhofer IEG. Furthermore, new processes for the efficient removal and discharge of scaling and drill cuttings in existing wells and underground facilities, as well as other services, are being developed and offered. All activities can be monitored and controlled online in real time during the above drilling and stimulation processes as well as during final production using innovative sensor technology, data transmission in the drill string, and innovative AI.

To obtain data and parameterize subsurface properties, such as geothermal reservoir potential, suitability of host rocks for storing energy and substances (H₂, CO₂), the production of georesources (e.g., lithium) from rock formations, as well as physicochemical interactions between rock and fluids and 4D rock deformation, Fraunhofer IEG offers you all the processes and technologies you need to implement your projects in its geoscience laboratories and in close cooperation with the laboratories of the LIH at RWTH Aachen University.

Before underground infrastructure such as boreholes and storage facilities can be put into operation, production and injection tests must be carried out under the supervision of mining or water authorities. Our teams offer you all the services you need to prepare and support the commissioning of your facility. In addition to supporting the relevant operational tests and analyses in the field, IEG provides a laboratory infrastructure for low-risk and low-investment demonstration of the underground infrastructure prior to commissioning. With our “i.BOGS,” underground conditions can be simulated accurately and potential operational risks identified at an early stage. The results can also be used and evaluated for a digital twin in a simulation of your commissioning or production. This also allows the optimal monitoring system for your facility to be designed and implemented.