Geothermal energy potential and its possible application in Azerbaijan

Geothermal energy is one of the most promising sources in Azerbaijan. There are different types of ground or surface heat sources, such as mud volcanoes, mineral water, and deep wells. In the Azerbaijan territory, no active volcanoes and geysers turn out to be present. However, geothermal energy can be extracted from many wells where reservoir temperatures of thermal fluid are higher than 90°C. Especially, the Greater and Lesser Caucasus, the Absheron Peninsula, and Talysh region are characterized by the presence of geothermal fluids. The reservoirs where thermal fluid was discovered and partially studied in several wells developed for oil and gas in the Kur basin and the Precaspian-Guba region. Given the above, this study focuses on geothermal resources' potential and their utilization analysis in Azerbaijan. Analyzed Jarly-3 well resulted in the most significant thermal water temperature at 96°C. At the wellhead, the water temperature is 92°C, and mineralization is 50 g/l. The well's flow rate exceeded 20000 m3/day. According to calculations performed, the estimated energy capacity of this area is around 70 MW. Another high-potential well, with a power potential of about 10 MW, is found in Nakhchivan's Daridagh thermal region. In addition, the Absheron peninsula turned out to have thermal springs and thermal water wells. Moreover, the well (depth 2400m) produces mineral water with a temperature of 68°C, which is utilized for balneology in Shikh field. The well's potential power is up to 1.3MW. Most geothermal energy is used for recreational, and balneology uses such as in Kalbadjar and Istisu regions.