The Podhale geothermal reservoir simulation for long-term sustainable production

The Podhale geothermal system, located in the southern, mountainous part of Poland, is the most valuable reservoir of geothermal waters discovered in the country to date and the one with the highest capacities in Central and Eastern Europe. Over 20 years of continuous operation has proved its stable operating parameters - a small drop in pressure and an unnoticeable temperature change. Production of over 500 m3/h of geothermal water with an 86 °C wellhead temperature is current practise, while drilling a new production well and reconstruction of an injection well allows for production that may significantly exceed 600 m3/h. To utilize these vast resources, a binary power cycle for electricity and heat production is considered by group of researchers. The results of numerical modelling of heat extraction from the Podhale reservoir are presented in the article as a preliminary step to the detailed analysis of combined heat and power production through a binary power cycle.