Smart Geothermal™ Drilling and Energy Field Creation
We overcame many obstacles to make geothermal practical and affordable. As a result, Indie Energy has the most innovative and fast-growinggeothermal drilling operation in the United States. We've pioneered the production-scale harvesting of geothermal energy in space-constrained, highly-structured and tightly-regulated environments. We protect our underground water resources and the stability of the ground in a way that other companies do not.
These are some of our innovative drilling methods and technologies that are fast, clean and very safe. With more than two million square feet of reference accounts in the Chicago area, we've demonstrated:
- Our innovative EarthSafeTM drilling system allows us to effectively harvest clean, renewable geothermal energy in spaces as small as 100 square feet.
- Indie Energy's specialized geothermal drills are much smaller than traditional drilling rigs. Compared to a typical 40-foot drilling rig, Indie Energy geothermal rigs are just 12 feet in length. Plus, our specialized rigs are track-mounted and remote-controlled to navigate better in small spaces.
- Our geothermal boreholes are drilled much deeper than the industry norm, typically exceeding 600 feet. Drilling deeper allows us to harvest vast quantities of geothermal energy using fewer boreholes, meaning the entire geothermal energy field can fit within a smaller geographic footprint. This is an important factor in space-constrained urban environments.
- Indie Energy's expert drillers permanently encase our geothermal energy conduits in steel tubing, anchoring the steel in underlying layers of bedrock. Other geothermal drilling operators typically line their energy conduits with a grout mixture, which is not as durable. In contrast, Indie Energy's steel-lined conduits not only have an operating life of more than 100 years, but they also improve soil stability, safeguard the built environment from structural destabilization and help protect aquifers from surface-level contamination.
- We've instituted proprietary methods and technologies to keep our construction sites dry and clean throughout the drilling process, making the construction site accessible and operational to other trades.
