雪佛龙和三井物产将合作探索日本地热发电的潜力

据道琼斯9月26日消息，雪佛龙公司和三井物产周一表示，雪佛龙旗下低碳燃料部门将与三井物产旗下石油勘探子公司合作，研究日本地热发电的潜力。

美国雪佛龙公司去年成立的雪佛龙新能源国际公司与三井石油勘探公司签署了一项合作协议，以评估先进的闭环技术对日本未来地热项目的有效性。

两家公司在一份声明中表示∶“传统地热项目使用的是需要高温的传统蒸汽涡轮机，通常是采取集中的方式，受地质特征限制，而先进闭环技术与传统项目不同，有可能使人们在更大的温度和地质范围内获得地热资源。”

两家公司还可能考虑其他地方的地热机会。

三井石油勘探公司首席执行官Hirotaka Hamamoto表示，此次合作旨在将雪佛龙的地下技术与三井石油的地热专业知识结合起来，可能会释放日本巨大的地热资源。

2011年福岛核事故发生后，在政策支持下，地热发电厂在日本大量涌现，但仍只占该国能源产出的一小部分。根据国际可再生能源机构的数据，地热发电有可能成为日本能源转型的关键推动力，日本拥有世界第三大地热能源储量。

庞晓华 摘译自 道琼斯

原文如下：

Chevron, Mitsui to Explore Geothermal Power Potential in Japan

Chevron Corp.'s low-carbon fuels unit is teaming up with Mitsui & Co.'s oil-exploration subsidiary to look into the potential of geothermal power generation in Japan, the companies said Monday. 

Chevron New Energies International Pte., formed by the U.S. energy giant last year, signed a joint collaboration agreement with Mitsui Oil Exploration Co. to evaluate the effectiveness of advanced closed loop technology for a future geothermal project in Japan. 

"Unlike conventional geothermal projects, which use traditional steam turbines requiring high temperatures often found in concentrated locations limited by geological characteristics, ACL can potentially enable access to geothermal resources at a wider range of temperatures and geologies," they said in a statement. 

The companies may also consider geothermal opportunities elsewhere. 

The collaboration, which aims to combine Chevron's subsurface tech with Mitsui Oil's geothermal expertise, "could unlock tremendous geothermal resources in Japan," said Hirotaka Hamamoto, chief executive of Mitsui Oil Exploration. 

Geothermal power plants proliferated in Japan the wake of the Fukushima disaster in 2011 thanks to policy support, but still account for only a sliver of the country's energy output. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, geothermal power has the potential to be a key driver of the energy transition in Japan, which has the world's third-largest store of the energy source.