This bulletin is for your information.

Few people are aware that there is interest in geothermal power generation in British Columbia. However, the Ministry of Energy and Mines has sold tenures to two areas known to have geothermal potential: 1. recently in the East Kootenays, and 2. the more fully explored Meager Creek area north of Pemberton/Whistler.

This bulletin discusses the Meager Creek project in more detail.

On July 16, 2004, Western Geopower Corp filed a “pre-application” with the Environmental Assessment Office for the South Meager Geothermal Project. ( link)

Western Geopower Corp
President: Kenneth McLeod
411 – 837 West Hastings St.,
Vancouver, BC, V6C 3N6
604-662-3338
Fax: 604-646-6603
info@geopower.com

From the June 1, 2004 news release:
$14.5 million test drilling program in 2004
2 wells, 2500 feet deep
average temperature 220-240C
max measured temp to date of 275C
potential development capacity of 100 MW or more
“most likely capacity” of 192 MW.

From the company website:

The South Meager Geothermal Project is owned and operated by Meager Creek Development Corp. (MCDC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Western GeoPower. The project is located 170 km north of Vancouver, British Columbia, and 70 km north of the town of Pemberton. The town of Whistler, located close to Pemberton, is the site of the 2010 Winter Olympic games. One of the underlying themes of the games is a commitment to preserving the environment, which geothermal energy symbolizes.

The South Meager Geothermal Project is held under lease from the Province of British Columbia and is valid until 2017, at which time it will be renewable for an additional 20 years. The area under lease is 4,267 ha and has been extensively explored for its geothermal energy potential.

Western GeoPower’s independent consultant, GeothermEx, Inc. of Richmond, California, recognized as the world’s foremost authority on geothermal energy, has concluded that the South Meager Geothermal Project has sufficient heat potential to produce a minimum of 110 Megawatts (MW) of electrical power, up to a maximum of 250 MW, with a probable capacity of 200 MW. A production capacity of 200 MW is equivalent to the consumption of 160,000 households.

Upon the successful completion of the feasibility study and receipt of governmental project approvals, Western GeoPower intends to raise the capital required to achieve 100MW of generation in mid 2007 and 200MW in 2009.