Drilling began on Montserrat’s first geothermal well, MON-1, on 17 March. “MON-1 was originally designed to be drilled to a maximum depth of 2,000 meters. However, while temperatures were high there was no indication of permeable zones that would allow hot water to flow into the well. Therefore the well was deepened to a depth of 2,298 meters; a permeable zone was found at 2,142 m.
“Overall, information that has been gathered while drilling has matched well with the models’ predictions. Initial temperature testing during and after drilling of the well indicated temperatures of around 250 ˚C, even higher than originally expected. Early testing also indicates an inflow of hot water or a ‘feeder zone’ at a depth of 2,142 meters – 142 meters below the planned depth for the well.
