Well Siting and Drilling for Duke Energy
Maricopa County, Arizona
Overview:
SWCA was selected by Duke Energy to assist in the development of a cooling water supply for a natural gas-fired power plant located west of Phoenix.
Services Provided:
- Assisted with the acquisition of groundwater rights in the area
- Evaluated existing irrigation wells
- Prepared a well spacing analysis for the Arizona Department of Water Resources to show that no existing wells would be unduly impacted
- Provided field oversight of the drilling, including collection, cataloging, and assessment of soil samples from the borehole, oversight and evaluation of spinner logs, gamma logs, and resistivity logs, final design of the well screen and gravel pack, and compilation of all well construction information
Results:
This project had an extremely tight deadline, which required SWCA to have the water supply in place by the time operational testing of the power plant began. Not only was the drilling of four new wells completed on schedule, but the flow rates obtained from the wells exceeded client expectations, with all wells capable of producing more than 2,000 gallons per minute, and one well capable of producing more than 5,000 gallons per minute. The client praised SWCA for our efficiency in this drilling project.
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