Value of MT inversions for geothermal exploration: Accounting for multiple interpretations of field data & determining new drilling locations

We present a value of information (VOI) analysis for magnetotelluric (MT) data for locating high steam flow regions of a geothermal resource. The high electrical conductivity feature in volcanic geothermal settings, known as the clay cap, can be indicative of geothermal alteration occurring just above the resource. We demonstrate how several alternative interpretations of the clay cap from one 3D electrical conductivity model can be used to estimate the value of geophysical information. Our results indicate that the final VOI estimate was not strongly dependent on the different interpretations of the clay cap. Additionally, we demonstrate how these VOI evaluations can be used to guide future drilling locations.