Компания XGS Energy провела презентацию геотермального проекта в Сокорро, чтобы развеять опасения жителей

XGS geothermal company hosts open house Data center concerns addressed with the public XGS Energy hosted an open house last week at the Socorro Convention Center to share information about their potential geothermal project in Socorro County. The event represented their initial step toward engaging the community, said Vice President and Head of Development at XGS Energy Logan Stephens. “We had close to 100 people throughout the night, so we were really pleased with the turnout. We had a team of seven folks there, so lots of opportunities to have one‑on‑one conversations and group discussions.” Stephens said. In June of last year, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced that XGS Energy and Meta had agreed to develop 150 megawatts of advanced geothermal energy in New Mexico. “New Mexico is one of the nation’s leading sources of clean energy, and we’ve worked hard to ensure our state remains at the forefront of the energy transition,” Gov. Lujan Grisham said at the time. Stephens said XGS is a “next‑generation geothermal” company, meaning it’s different from other types of technologies, using a closed‑loop system designed to address water concerns. He said although it requires an initial investment of water to drill, cement, and control dust, “we’re not talking about a big ongoing long-term water demand.” According to Stephens, although they currently lack permits, they intend to submit applications to the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department over the upcoming months. These applications will seek permits for both the well construction and the water required to support the drilling operations. The initial exploratory well is slated for a small, non-conservation section of the 300,000-plus-acre Armandaris Ranch situated near the interstate. Common concerns brought up by attendees of the open house were water use, land use, data centers and environmental impacts, Stephens said. “I think there was maybe a little bit of carryover from some of those [data center] experiences, and folks understandably came with a lot of questions,” Stephens said. “We’re not partnering with any data center developments proposed in Socorro County. We’re just focused on the geothermal potential.” He said XGS’s commercial arrangement is with PNM and Meta to potentially supply geothermal to PNM's grid if a viable resource is found, which would not require a data center on site. “We actually don’t have the permits yet,” Stephens said. “It’s our development philosophy to engage as early as possible in the process, so we wanted to have this [open house] and collect all of this valuable input to our permitting efforts with the state.” Brenda Wilkinson, Socorro Resident, said she attended the open house for two reasons: her general interest in science and geothermal energy and her deep concerns about the effects of some forms of development on the environment. “The secrecy and duplicity of the Green Data proposal scared me,” Wilkinson said." After so much secrecy about possible locations for the data center developments, I was relieved to see a dot on a map, but I’m concerned about proximity to Fort Craig and Bosque del Apache.” She said she left still feeling concerned about transparency regarding where the power will end up and when the project actually started. “The open house felt like a sales pitch to me,” Wilkinson said. Jon Hertz, a resident of the Magdalena area and a member of the Socorro County Data Center Moratorium Blue Ribbon Committee, said that his goal in attending the open house was to gain a clearer understanding of the proposal and determine the destination of the generated power. He specifically sought to discover whether the intent was to supply electricity to a data center within Socorro. “They did a good job presenting how their process works. I hope to do some more investigating how their project may impact our environment,” Hertz said "I definitely felt more informed after seeing their presentation. My first impression is that their proposal may provide a cleaner, more environmentally sound form of energy than other more destructive processes.” Stephens said the company is in the early, exploratory phase of a potential geothermal power project in Socorro County, with one exploratory well and only later, if the resource proves viable, could lead to a larger commercial project. “At this stage, it’s really driven by the resource potential data.” Stephen said, “If we are able to confirm it, we’ll put together a plan for a commercial project, and then come back to the community and do a lot more of these open house‑type events.” According to the New Mexico Land Conservancy, the Armendaris Ranch is 315,000 acres spanning along the Rio Grande from its northern boundary at the Bosque Del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, reaching nearly fifty miles southward to the southern end of Elephant Butte Lake near the town of Truth or Consequences. It spreads eastward from the river and lake, the terrain extends past the Fra Cristobal Mountains toward the San Andres Mountains and the White Sands Missile Range. The ranch is situated within the Chihuahuan Desert ecoregion, the expansive scale and diverse geomorphology of this terrain accommodate more than 500 vertebrate species and extensive lava fields containing the Jornada caves serve as a vital seasonal and migratory sanctuary for upwards of one million bats representing multiple species.