New hope for Eden's £39m geothermal energy project (Cornish Guardian)
The news that funding is to be made available for the development of geothermal energy in Cornwall has been hailed as a major breakthrough by St Austell's Eden Project and EGS Energy Ltd.
The tourist attraction and its geothermal expert partner have been trying to get the multi-million pound project to create UK's first geothermal plant off the ground for more than six years.
The scheme, estimated at a total cost of £39 million, stalled due to lack of funding, but the Department for Communities and Local Government has now released a call for proposals for £10.6m of funding from the European Regional Development Fund.
A design approved by Cornwall Council planners in 2010 envisaged boring holes three miles into underlying granite at Eden's site, a former China Clay quarry at Bodelva.
Water would then be pumped through the boreholes, using the underground heat to raise the water temperature and produce steam to be used to power a turbine that could generate 3-4 MW, enough electricity to meet all the Eden Project's needs.
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