St Hilaire Precinct District Geothermal System

In January 2021, DEA drilled a number of test bore holes for The Crystal Group, owner/developers of a 6,500 home precinct to be based at Wallan Victoria. These included investigation of aquifers in the local area and geological assessment, including several test bore holes. Ground loops were also installed to serve the onsite home display centre’s heating and cooling system.

The new estate, scheduled to start civil works late 2022, will be the largest geothermal system in Australia, incorporating 530 hectares of integrated geothermal resources comprising geothermal ground loop fields, lake and aquifer based geothermal systems.

Engineering Design and regulatory approval is well underway, and the first 290 lot system will be installed to meet the project schedule starting in 2022/2023. The smart geothermal system is modularised and integrated, providing maximum diversity in the system and optimal efficiency. The unique design is tailored to meet Australian conditions and provide ease of constructability and a low cost of operation & maintenance.

Multiple radial and vertical drill rigs will be utilised in the construction phase of the project. The scale of this project is unprecedented. It will be the largest geothermal system installed in Australia and one of the largest residential precinct geothermal district systems in the world.