ENERGY IN ICELAND - Orkustofnun

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7 Lookingto the futurePolicy objectivesThe government’s policy is to harnessIceland’s clean and renewableenergy reserves, geothermal andhydropower, for sustainable development,and to further improve theliving standards in the country. Useof clean energy sources contributesto the reduction of carbon dioxideemissions.Jónas ErlendssonA swimming pool in Vik, South Iceland.The option of exporting power via asubmarine cable has been studiedon and off since the early 1950s. Thistype of export is now consideredtechnically feasible, but still remainson the margin of becoming economicallyfeasible. The cost of electricitywould double if it is transportedfrom Iceland to the continent of Europe.This fact favours the policy ofproducing power intensive productsdomestically for export.Production of alternative fuels hasalso been studied for decades. Studiesin the early 1990s indicated thatthe production and use of alternativefuels was not economically viable.36
The situation may be somewhat different today, mainly due to progress in fuel celltechnology, but many innovations and improvements are needed before hydrogen orother alternative fuels can replace oil in the energy system. During the past few yearsthe discussion on alternative fuels in Iceland has mainly focussed on hydrogen as anenergy carrier. In 1999, VistOrka, an Icelandic private company, together with DaimlerChrysler,Norsk Hydro and Shell International, signed a joint venture agreement onco-operation in this area. These companies are the owners of the resultant company,Icelandic New Energy (Islensk NyOrka). Even though the government is not a party tothe agreement it made the following statement on that occasion:It is the government’s policy to promote increased utilization of renewableenergy resources in harmony with the environment. One possibleapproach towards this goal is production of environmentally friendlyfuels for powering vehicles and fishing vessels. Liquid hydrogen is anexample of such a fuel. The establishment of a company owned by Icelandicparties and several international corporate leaders in the fieldof hydrogen fuel technology could open up new opportunities in thisfield.The government of Iceland welcomes the establishment of this companyby these parties and considers that the choice of location forthis project is an acknowledgement of Iceland’s distinctive status andlong-term potential. The initiative taken by the parties involved in thisproject deserves to be applauded and respected.Deep drillingIn 2000, the Iceland Deep Drilling Project (IDDP), an Icelandic energy consortium,was established. The IDDP is run by three energy companies along with the NationalEnergy Authority and Iceland Geosurvey (Islenskar Orkurannsoknir). The purpose ofthe IDDP project is to study the economic feasibility of extracting energy and chemicalsfrom hydrothermal systems at supercritical conditions. An advanced drillingtechnology is needed to study the supercritical hydrous fluid, as well as a novel fluidhandling and evaluation system.One of the IDDP’s aims is the drilling into a high-temperature hydrothermal system,of a 4–5 km deep drill-hole, which is currently being prepared. Located at a riftedplate margin on a mid-ocean ridge, the drill-hole is expected to reach a 400–600°Chot supercritical hydrous fluid.The IDDP is not considered as an alternative solution to meet short-term, future energydemands, but is rather seen as a long-term research and development project,37
Page 1 and 2: ENERGY IN ICELANDHistorical Perspec
Page 3: ENERGY IN ICELANDHistorical Perspec
Page 6 and 7: CONTENTSForeword by the Minister of
Page 8 and 9: 1 IntroductionDuring the past centu
Page 10 and 11: 2 Historical OVERVIEWof Energy Affa
Page 12 and 13: Oddur SigurðssonA hydropower stati
Page 14 and 15: 3 ENERGYRESOURCESEnergy reservesOdd
Page 16 and 17: Figure 3. Installed capacity of the
Page 18 and 19: 4 ENERGY usePrimary energy use inin
Page 20 and 21: Oddur SigurðssonHeated parking spa
Page 22 and 23: Helga BarðadóttirThe silica rich
Page 24 and 25: Oddur SigurðssonDuring the Christm
Page 26 and 27: In 1970, the first year that the IS
Page 28 and 29: Iceland New Energyof these gases, s
Page 30 and 31: 5 RegulatorystructureLegislation on
Page 32 and 33: Oddur SigurðssonThe Ferrosilicon p
Page 34 and 35: Energy agencyA step towards bringin
Page 38 and 39: which will take at least a decade t
Page 40: Figure 20. Map of Iceland.40

ENERGY IN ICELAND - Orkustofnun

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