Geothermal heat in the Kempen supports a sustainable energy mix
The Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO) is currently conducting seismic measurements in the Kempen subsurface to map the earth's layers. It is extracting hot groundwater from those layers and using it as a source of green energy.
Anyone driving through Mol, Dessel, or Retie in the Antwerp Kempen region may well spot one of the four so-called vibration trucks currently in operation. These are trucks fitted with heavy vibration plates to create artificial waves. They halt approximately every 10 metres, and send vibrations ranging from 1 to 100 Hz into the ground for about one minute, reaching depths of up to 5 km. The vibrations move through the subsurface and bounce off different geological layers, much like sonar in water. Across the entire region, covering an area of 40 km², surveyors have installed a total of 6,000 sensors at intervals of 20 m. This network captures the reflected waves and thus creates a 3D model of the Earth's layers.
Between those layers of earth, there is hot water. VITO's nearby power station in Mol extracts hot water through a pipe from deep underground (3.5 to 4 km), harnesses its heat, and uses it to warm 200 homes, its own facilities, and the buildings of the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre (SCK CEN). The cooled water is then returned to the ground through a second pipe to reheat, completing the cycle.
Geothermal energy as a source of green energy in Belgium. Not necessarily something you'd expect. And yet.