Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

www.elsevier.com/locate/geothermics

Reservoir engineering assessment of low-

temperature geothermal resources in the
Skierniewice municipality (Poland)
Alfredo Battistelli a,*, Stanislaw Nagy b
a
Aquater SpA (ENI Group), Via Miralbello 53, 61047 S. Lorenzo in Campo (PS), Italy
b
University of Mining and Metallurgy, Drilling and Petroleum Engineering Department,
Al. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow, Poland

Received 1 March 1999; accepted 3 December 1999

Abstract
Low temperature geothermal resources and their production potential in the Skierniewice
area of Poland were evaluated assuming conventional well doublet arrays. The reservoir
engineering assessment was carried out, within the framework of a World Bank project, to
study the feasibility of providing heat to the local district heating system, using data from
two existing wells and from geophysical surveys, and by evaluating results of production,
injection and interference well tests. Two options were simulated mathematically, using
both semianalytical and numerical codes, considering a simplied reservoir model: one
based on the two existing wells, the other considering four wells, two to be drilled. The
injection of spent brines into a dierent reservoir was also studied. # 2000 CNR. Published
by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Low temperature; District heating; Reservoir engineering; Brine injection; TOUGH2;
EWASG; Skierniewice; Poland

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +39-0721-731326; fax: +39-0721-731376.

E-mail address: alfredo.battistelli@aquater.eni.it (A. Battistelli).

0375-6505/00/$20.00 # 2000 CNR. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S0375-6505(00)00006-7
702 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

Nomenclature

C wellbore storage coecient (m3/bar)

dPD pressure derivative function (dimensionless)
h reservoir thickness (m)
k permeability (m2)
P pressure (bar)
S skin factor (dimensionless)
t time (s)

Subscripts and superscripts

D dimensionless

1. Introduction

Low-temperature geothermal waters have been known to exist in Poland since

the 10th century. In the past, the geothermal waters were used mainly for
medicinal purposes, balneology and recreation in health resorts. During the last
few decades, a substantial amount of data on the occurrence of low-temperature
geothermal resources over a large part of the Polish territory has been derived
from oil and gas exploration drilling and related exploration surveys, especially in
the Polish Lowlands basins. These exploration data have been systematically
analysed and processed during the past decade to provide a consistent data base
on the regional distribution of geothermal resources and their characteristics in
the Polish sedimentary basins. These initial eorts culminated in the preparation
of the Atlas of Geothermal Energy Resources in the Polish Lowlands edited by
Gorecki (1995).
Concurrently, interest in geothermal resources was renewed by the Polish
Government's goal to promote local non-polluting energy resources in order to
replace fossil fuels, such as coal, and to reduce the country's dependence on
imported energy. As a result, several projects, led by the Polish National Fund for
Environmental Protection and Water Resources, were initiated and funded during
the 1990s, addressed to the exploration and development of geothermal resources.
These projects were based on the possibility of developing geothermal resources
for district heating purposes in place of the highly polluting coal that is being used
now. Consequently, pre-feasibility and feasibility studies were approved and
performed in the areas of Szczecin and Stargard Szczecinski, Pyrzyce, Czarnkow,
Skierniewice-Zyrardow, Mszczonow, and Kolo-Uniejow in the Polish Lowlands,
Cieplice in the Sudety Mountains and the Podhale region (Zakopane) in the Tatra
Mountains (Fig. 1). The studies were discussed by Gladysz et al. (1994),
Bujakowski (1997), Dlugosz and Nagy (1995) and Meyer and Kozlowski (1995).
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 703

2. The Skierniewice-Zyrardow project

The project described here was developed in the Skierniewice and Zyrardow
municipalities in Skierniewice Voievodship (County), about 60 km southwest of
Warsaw (Fig. 1). These municipalities, having decided to improve the energy
performance of their district heating systems as a means of reducing air pollution,
examined the various renewable energy resources, including geothermal energy,
that could supply heat to their coal-fed district heating systems. The District
Heating Modernisation and Environment Project Skierniewice Voievodship,
cities of Skierniewice and Zyrardow, was implemented with the assistance of the
World Bank. Its purpose was to evaluate the potential benets of using
geothermal energy, including a reduction of harmful emissions, improved energy
conservation, the promotion of non-polluting domestic energy resources, lower
heating costs, and stimulation of local and regional economies. Based on these
premises, a technical assistance program was conceived to assess available
geothermal resources in the area and enable decision-making for future
investments (Aquater, 1997).
The study area, which includes most of the County of Skierniewice, is part
of a Polish Mesozoic sub-basin known as the Grudzladz-Warsaw basin
(Fig. 1). The Laramide syncline, trending SWNE and lled with Upper

Fig. 1. Geothermal regions of Poland. Areas under study: I Podhale (Tatra Mts.); II Czarnkow; III
Skierniewice-Zyrardow and Mszczonow; IV Kolo-Uniejow; V Szczecin-Stargard Szczecinski and
Pyrzyce, VI Cieplice (Modied after Gladysz et al., 1994).
704 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

Cretaceous deposits, is the main geological structure in the area (Marek,

1983). Upper Cretaceous deposits rest upon Lower Cretaceous, Jurassic and
Triassic rocks. The thickness of the Jurassic and Triassic sequences increases
toward south-west from 1300 to 2000 m, and they are located at depths of
8001400 m, respectively.
The technical assistance program was focused on mapping Jurassic
formations, evaluating the characteristics of the sandstone geothermal aquifers
and dening optimal schemes for the exploitation of geothermal resources in
the area. Available geological and geophysical data included 15 well geological
proles, 17 seismic proles for a total length of 415 km, and 14 downhole
geophysical logs. Renewed evaluation of geological data and seismic reection
proles and their correlation with the stratigraphy derived from oil and gas
exploration wells led to mapping of the predominant seismic horizons. Those
of interest for geothermal exploitation were found to be the top of Upper
Jurassic (J3), the top of the Middle Jurassic (J2), and a reection horizon at
the top of the Rhaetian (Triassic) horizon. The Lower Jurassic sequences
present abundant sandstone layers interbedded with mudstone and claystone
layers.
In the area, four aquifers were identied in the Lower Jurassic sequence and
named according to the chronostratigraphy (from top to bottom): (A) Upper
Toarcian, (B) Upper Pliensbachian, (C) Synemurian, and (D) Hettangian. Well
temperature proles and reservoir pressure measurements, as well as data on
reservoir brine composition, reservoir temperature, pressure, salinity and
temperature gradients at the bottom of Lower Jurassic formations, were reviewed
and mapped.
The project was dependent on well data to corroborate the results from seismic
reection proles and to allow an assessment of the geothermal reservoir
characteristics. Between 1991 and 1997, two wells were drilled on the outskirts of
Skierniewice (Fig. 2) to dene the hydrogeological characteristics of the
Hettangian aquifer. Well GT-1 was drilled in 1991 to a total depth of 3001 m
(Bujakowska et al., 1991), and well GT2 was drilled in 1997 to a total depth of
2900 m (Biernat et al., 1995). A schematic geological cross-section through well
GT-1 is shown in Fig. 3.
Wells GT-1 and GT-2 tapped a high salinity reservoir brine having a
temperature of 70 C. The brine is characterised by a TDS content of 111 g/l with
a sodium chloride content accounting for more than 90% of the total dissolved
solids. The concentration of noncondensible gas (NCG) dissolved in the reservoir
brine amounts to 2.6  105 on a mole gas/mol water basis, with nitrogen and
methane representing 65 and 25% of noncondensible gases, respectively. The brine
bubble point pressure at reservoir conditions was then estimated in approximately
5 bar. The high salinity and the measured pH of 6.0 at 25 C makes the brine quite
corrosive. The aggressiveness of the water is higher at reservoir conditions, where
the pH is estimated to be 5.7. As far as the scaling potential is concerned,
theoretical calculations of mineral equilibria were performed (Aquater, 1997) at
temperatures ranging from 30 to 70 C, representing the range of thermodynamic
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 705

Fig. 2. Depths (in meters, from ground level) of the bottom of the Lower Jurassic in the Skierniewice-
Zyrardow area (local coordinates are in meters). Solid circles represent wells. The position of the
geological cross-section through well SK GT-1 is also shown as a solid line.

conditions foreseen in the surface installations during exploitation. The

calculations suggested that pyrite and galena, barite, dolomite and silica minerals
such as chalcedony and cristobalite-a, would most likely be precipitated.

3. Single well pressure transient tests

In well GT-1 the Hettangian aquifer section was found between the depths of
2875 and 2941 m. The well was completed with two screened intervals of 5 and 37 m
thickness. After well completion, a production test was carried out in 1991
(CFG-Geotherma, 1991), recording the downhole pressure during a drawdown
and subsequent buildup sequence using a quartz pressure transducer. Fig. 4 shows
the match of pressure dierence and pressure derivative function on the
conventional loglog plot of dimensionless pressure vs. tD/CD (Bourdet et al.,
1989) obtained with the AUTOMATE-II computer code using an automated non-
linear least-squares regression analysis (Horne, 1990). The model used for the
match is a homogeneous reservoir with skin and wellbore storage eects at the
producing well. The computed permeabilitythickness product is 27.3  1012 m3
706 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

and the skin factor 1.4. No double porosity nor boundary eects are detectable
on the loglog plot. In this respect, it should be noted that the response of the
Lower Jurassic aquifers can be aected by the proximity of several geologic faults.
One of them has been inferred at a distance of approximately 8001500 m north
of the well. Even for limited fault displacement, considering that permeable levels
are quite thin, it is possible that this fault, as well as other faults, could act as a
no-ow (impermeable) boundary.
Well GT-2, drilled in 1997, is located 1 km SSE of well GT-1 (Fig. 2).
It penetrated ve distinct sandstone layers within the Hettangian reservoir, over a
total pay thickness of 26.7 m. The well had been tested during three ow
production stages using increasing withdrawal rates. The downhole pressure was
recorded using a Kuster pressure gauge during drawdown and during the
subsequent buildup periods. From the interpretation of borehole geophysical logs,
it was found that the two deeper layers are responsible for 70% of the reservoir
hydraulic transmissivity while representing only 46% of the open interval
thickness. This nding suggests remarkable consequences for the injection of
cooled brine relative to the thermal front displacement in the dierent permeable
layers, resulting in a potential faster thermal breakthrough-time at the production
well. The interpretation of GT-2 pressure transients was performed using a

Fig. 3. SSWNNE schematic geological cross section through well GT-1 (modied after Gladysz et al.,
1994).
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 707

Fig. 4. Loglog plot of dimensionless pressure PD and dimensionless pressure derivative function dPD
as a function of dimensionless variable tD/CD for the buildup pressure transient test in well GT-1.

homogeneous reservoir model with skin and wellbore storage eects at the
producing well. It was found that aquifer transmissivity is lower than that in well
GT-1, i.e., permeabilitythickness product is only 13.0  1012 m3, and the skin
factor 2.7.

4. Interference tests

In August 1997, interference tests were recorded between wells GT-1 and GT-2.
Only the water level was recorded in the non-active well (instead of bottomhole
pressures) owing to logistic and nancial constraints. Recorded level changes in
the observation well were found to be aected by the pressure and temperature
transients generated by the previous production periods performed on both wells
GT-1 and GT-2. Several phenomena generated substantial disturbances.
Variations of the uid column density due to temperature transients in the
wellbore were by far the most important. Fig. 5 shows the recorded level in GT-2
during pumping of GT-1. After a marked decline during production, the level in
GT-2 increased, then stabilised and declined instead of increasing steadily and
asymptotically to reach its initial value, as was expected. This behaviour conrms
that level changes due to conductive cooling of the uid column in the wellbore
(subsequent to a previous production period) had been superimposed on those
708 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

generated by the interference between wells GT-1 and GT-2. The reservoir
pressure was computed from the measured brine level while neglecting the eects
on brine density of conductive temperature transients in the wellbore. The
interpretation was rst performed by matching the drawdown portion of the
recorded data with the Theis' solution to the diusivity equation (Earlougher,
1977), using a non-linear least-squares regression analysis (Horne, 1990) and xing
the static reservoir pressure and rock porosity. The analysis gave the following
results: permeabilitythickness 23.3  1012 m3, pay thickness 30.8 m and reservoir
storativity 5.4  109 m/Pa. The match between measured and computed data is
shown in Fig. 6.
To test the reliability of the results, the interpretation was performed using the
buildup portion of the transient pressure sequence as well throughout the pressure
rise. Accordingly, the estimated parameters are as follows: permeabilitythickness
= 36.8  1012 m3, pay thickness 37.4 m, and reservoir storativity 6.7  109 m/Pa.
This interpretation, which included the buildup data, thus gave dierent
estimates of reservoir properties, clearly showing that additional eects, other than
the interference between the two wells, were contributing to the level changes
recorded in GT-2. In other words, the interference data had proved that the two
wells, GT-1 and GT-2, are hydraulically connected through the Hettangian
permeable layers with estimated average reservoir parameters in the upper range
of values obtained with the single-well tests. On the other hand, the presence of

Fig. 5. Interference test: production ow rate in well GT-1 and recorded water levels in well GT-2.
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 709

Fig. 6. Interference test: matching of drawdown portion of pressure transients recorded in well GT-2.

signicant noise in the pressure and temperature transients made it impossible to

obtain more accurate estimates of the reservoir properties.

5. Injection tests

The viability of brine injection is an important aspect of low-temperature

reservoir exploitation using well doublets, and is considered to be a challenging
operation when it is performed in clastic sedimentary reservoirs (BRGM et al.,
1997; Stefansson, 1997). Other recent experiences of brine injection in sandstone
reservoirs are reported for Germany (Kabus and Jantsch, 1995), Hungary (Szita,
1995), Denmark (Mahler, 1995) and Poland (Meyer and Kozlowski, 1995).
To test the Hettangian behaviour under injection, short-term injection tests were
performed in wells GT-1 and GT-2, using the wells alternatively as producers and
injectors. Before injection, the brine was sent through a lter that retains particles
with diameter larger than 5 mm. The lter eciency was estimated at ca 95%; the
amount of total suspended solids after ltering was not determined. First, the GT-1
well was used as producer and GT-2 as injector. The initial production rate was
60 m3/h, but during the test, the rate soon decreased as a result of rising injection
pressure. At the wellhead injection pressure of 8 bar, corresponding to the
wellhead service pressure, the injection rate in GT-2 stabilised at 11 m3/h. Average
710 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

wellhead injection temperature was 30 C. Injection test parameters are shown in
Fig. 7. The second test, with injection into well GT-1, provided similar results.
As no downhole measurements were performed during the injection tests, the
bottom-hole pressure at the producing well was computed from the measured
dynamic level, accounting for temperature transients in the wellbore and frictional
pressure losses (Hasan et al., 1994). The injectivity index of well GT-1, for
instance, decreased during the injection test and stabilized at a nal value of 0.6
(m3/h)/bar, which is only 7% of the theoretical injectivity index derived from the
measured productivity index. The modelling of downhole pressure during injection
suggested that the pressure buildup was caused by an increase in the skin factor at
the injection well sandface (i.e., becoming less negative). The downhole owing
pressure in GT-2, computed during the second injection test when GT-2 was used
as producer, was modelled using a skin factor value progressively decreasing from
a value of about 1.9 to the original undamaged value of 2.7. The fact that the
GT-2 productivity index recovered its initial pre-injection value is also conrmed
by the water level measurements before and after the injection tests shown in
Fig. 8. The value recorded after the injection test is in agreement with the
regression line calculated by considering the pre-injection water levels measured in
well GT-2 during the pumping tests. It is possible to conclude that the injection of
brine produced from GT-1 did not cause permanent damage to the GT-2 gravel
pack completion, nor to the surrounding formation.
The following reasons could be invoked to explain the observed decrease in
injectivity during the Hettangian aquifer tests:
. insucient ltering of brine before injection, whereby some suspended solids
were forced into the permeable layers plugging the narrow orices of the

Fig. 7. Injection test: recorded water levels and ow rate; GT-1 (producer); GT-2 (injector).
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 711

formation pore space. These solids could have been ne particles carried by the
uids, or scale particles from the production well or the surface piping, or solids
already present in the surface line;
. entrainment of ne particles around the injection well where the uid velocity is
higher, and further clogging of pores away from the wellbore sandface as the
velocity decreases;
. swelling of formation clay particles;
. formation of scale particles in the injection well or in the reservoir and further
deposition in the formation pores;
. clogging of pore spaces caused by gas bubbles transported by the injected uid.

The injectivity index of both wells dropped sharply, shortly after the start of
injection. The injection rate in GT-2 decreased from the initial 60 to 30 m3/h after
only 10 h, accompanied by an increase in wellhead pressure up to 8 bar,
corresponding to the service pressure of the wellhead equipment. Subsequently,
the injection parameters stabilised at about 11 m3/h at an almost constant
wellhead pressure. This does not suggest the clogging of pore spaces due to either
transport of suspended solids or deposition of scale particles, as these processes
should be responsible for a progressive decline of injectivity index with cumulative
injected volume and should also cause formation damage, which is not easily
eliminated by simply reversing the ow direction, a practice known as well
backwashing.

Fig. 8. Water level measured in well GT-2 during pumping and air lift tests, before and after the
injection test.
712 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

Injection tests performed in France on clayey aquifers of deep Triassic

sandstone formations (Boisdet et al., 1989) showed a rapid decline of the
injectivity index, that is, high productivity wells showed poor injection capabilities
when used as injectors. The possible explanation involving the sealing of pore
spaces by clay particles suspended in the reinjected uid was never proven by the
results of ltration tests as the quantity of clay particles recovered was too small.
Among the uid treatments proposed, the degassing of uid to avoid pore
clogging by gas bubbles entrained in the injected brine was deemed to be the most
appropriate. It was believed that gas bubbles forced into the formation would
accelerate the development of a two-phase zone around the wellbore accompanied
by a reduction of the liquid-phase relative permeability.
The noncondensible gas content of Hettangian reservoir uid is lower than 100
ppm by weight, with a bubble point pressure signicantly lower than the static
reservoir pressure. Thus, if the total pressure along the production-injection loop
is maintained higher than the brine bubble pressure, there is no risk of developing
a gaseous phase. On the other hand, at the start of injection into GT-2 the
water level was 127 m below ground level and the brine was pumped down from the
wellhead, plunging for more than 100 m. It is possible that the brine transported
bubbles and slugs of entrained air which were then forced into the formation, thus
determining the decline of injectivity index. Once the well was lled with brine, no
more bubbles were generated and the injectivity index stabilised. When production
resumed on GT-2, the gas bubbles were progressively removed because of the ow
towards the wellbore and dissolution into the reservoir brine. Available data do
not allow us to establish which was the dominant factor responsible for the
observed behaviour. Thus, it should be stressed that further tests will be needed to
determine whether injection into the Hettangian reservoir will be technically
feasible without previous brine treatment.

6. Evaluation of well doublet performance

The exploitation of geothermal resources in the Skierniewice Voievodship was

assessed considering conventional well doublet installations. Evaluations were
performed for both the Skierniewice and Zyrardow municipalities (Aquater, 1997).
At the latter site there were no wells tapping geothermal aquifers, so that reservoir
properties were estimated from wells drilled in surrounding areas and by using
surface geophysical survey data. For this reason, the geothermal resource
assessment is presented for the Skierniewice area alone. The technical solution
contemplated for the extractable geothermal energy was to include it as part of
the base-load heat supply, acting on the primary side of the existing district
heating system. Two alternatives were studied for doublet locations, one using the
existing GT-1GT-2 doublet shown in Fig. 2 (option A), and the other the drilling
of two additional wells to improve exploitation of the Hettangian aquifer and thus
extend the life of the existing doublet (option B). Injection temperature was xed,
for all the cases studied, at 47 C.
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 713

A preliminary evaluation for the existing well doublet (option A) was performed
considering a homogeneous innite reservoir and constant uid properties, and
neglecting heat conduction and dispersion in the reservoir and conductive heat
exchange with cap and bedrock formations. Based on the above assumptions, a
piston-like displacement of reservoir brine as well as a sharp thermal front are
assumed. Available analytical solutions for the reservoir pressure variations and
for the thermal breakthrough time, summarised by Menjoz and Lambert (1991),
were used to perform a sensitivity analysis on reservoir properties such as
formation permeability, thickness, porosity and heat capacity. The analysis
suggested for option A a short thermal breakthrough time, in the range of 1419
years, at an exploitation rate of 165 m3/h for the GT-1GT-2 doublet for a period
of 8000 h of operations annually. To obtain a thermal breakthrough of 25 years,
as conventionally considered at the feasibility stage, the exploitation rate should
be decreased to about 130 m3/h. For alternative B, the preliminary analysis
suggested a distance of approximately 12001500 m between two new wells to
be drilled in the future and the existing wells, for an exploitation rate close to
180 m3/h.
The two additional wells, referred to as GT-3 and GT-4, were assumed to be
located 1500 m from wells GT-1 and GT-2, on opposite sides from the existing
wells (Fig. 9). The well arrangement was chosen so as to utilize both GT-1 and
GT-2 as producers or injectors in order to avoid an excessively short
breakthrough time between them. To model the performance of multiple doublets
a modied version of the RESSQ computer code (Javandel et al., 1984) was used.
For a steady-state ow eld generated by multiple producers and injectors in a
homogeneous innite reservoir, RESSQ computes the streamline patterns and the
arrival time of injected uid on each streamline at producing wells. Under piston-
like displacement conditions, the ratio between the displacement front and the
thermal front velocities is constant and can be computed from reservoir
properties. Thus, RESSQ was also used to compute the location of the thermal
front as a function of time for the multiple doublet scheme considered. In this
manner, we obtained solutions equivalent to those of Gringarten and Sauty
(1975), when the heat transfer with conning beds and heat conduction and
dispersion in the reservoir are neglected.
Simulation studies performed using the RESSQ code allowed to verify that the
estimated regional ow velocity in the Lower Jurassic multi-aquifer system has
negligible eects on doublet performance; hence, regional ow was neglected in
further calculations. The presence of the inferred no-ow boundary and the eects
of horizontally-distributed reservoir heterogeneities were analysed for alternatives
A and B, computing the thermal breakthrough time for dierent exploitation rates
and well distances, and the production temperature after the thermal
breakthrough. Fig. 9 shows the streamlines and thermal front locations obtained
for option B at a constant total production rate of 360 m3/h, equally distributed
between wells GT-1 and GT-2 considering the presence of the inferred fault. The
no-ow boundary produces a deformation of streamlines only for wells GT-3 and
GT-1 which are closest to the fault, with only an 8% reduction of thermal
714 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

Fig. 9. Doublet option B: streamline pattern and thermal front location at 10, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40
years, for a doublet exploitation rate of 180 m3/h including the presence of the inferred impermeable
fault. GT-1 and GT-2: production wells; GT-3 and GT-4: injection wells.

breakthrough time. As far as the reservoir pressure is concerned, the maximum

impact is noted at GT-1, which shows an increase in pressure drawdown of less
than 0.5 bar.
The reinterpreted geophysical well logs displayed remarkable horizontal
heterogeneities in the Hettangian reservoir, yet they did not allow accurate
reconstruction of the three-dimensional geometry of a complex multilayered
aquifer such as the Hettangian in the Skierniewice area. In fact, well GT-1 was
found to intersect two signicant permeable sandstone layers, whereas ve
dierent sandstone layers are penetrated by well GT-2, located only 1 km away.
Although the interference data did not enable reliable quantitative evaluations,
they showed that GT-1 and GT-2 are connected through layers exhibiting a kh
product and reservoir storativity comparable to those estimated for the single
wells. Since well logs indicate that in both wells the deepest levels are the most
permeable, a tentative correlation was assumed by associating the three upper
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 715

permeable levels in well GT-2 with the upper level in GT-1, and the two lower
levels in well GT-2 with the lower level in GT-1. The thickness, average
permeability and porosity of these upper and lower `equivalent' layers were
determined by averaging the reservoir properties estimated for wells GT-1 and
GT-2. The hydraulic transmissivity of the upper equivalent layer is approximately
25% of the total kh product. Assuming the same skin factor for both layers, the
doublet production/injection rate was shared between the layers proportionally to
their kh values. Mathematical simulations performed using the RESSQ code
showed important eects induced by horizontally distributed heterogeneities. For
example, if only the GT-1GT-2 doublet is operated, the thermal breakthrough
time is 25.7 years for the upper level and only 13.5 years for the lower one,
assuming an exploitation rate of 165 m3/h. Obtained breakthrough times are of
course conservative, having neglected, for the above simulations, the conductive
heat recharge from conning bedrocks.

6.1. Numerical modelling of doublet exploitation

As the Hettangian aquifer is characterised by thin permeable layers, the heat

recharge from cap and bed rocks signicantly sustain the production temperature
after thermal breakthrough. For selected cases, numerical simulations of doublet
performances were performed, considering horizontally-distributed reservoir
heterogeneities and accounting for conductive heat exchange with cap and bed rocks.
The TOUGH2 numerical reservoir simulator (Pruess, 1991) was used, implementing
the EWASG equation-of-state module developed to handle multiphase three-
component mixtures of water, sodium chloride and a NCG (Battistelli et al., 1997).
Both options A and B were simulated using a simplied model including two
horizontal, homogeneous, permeable layers, having the same properties as used in
the previous RESSQ analysis, which are separated by a mudstone layer acting as an
aquitard. In both cases, the production and injection rate was shared between layers
according to their kh values. Extraction rates of 130 and 180 m3/h were assumed for
each doublet for options A and B, respectively. Injection temperature was xed
at 47 C, as in the previous RESSQ analysis. A Cartesian 3D computational grid
was used, consisting of three horizontal layers representing the upper permeable
layer, the mudstone aquitard, and the lower permeable layer. To limit numerical
dispersion of the thermal front, a horizontal grid block dimension of 100 m was used
in the area of the wells, whereas it was increased gradually towards the lateral
boundaries. Upper and lower grid surfaces were assumed to be impervious. The heat
exchange with conning beds was computed by TOUGH2 using the analytical
method presented by Vinsome and Westerveld (1980). Lateral grid boundaries
were assumed to be at constant pressure, temperature and uid composition
corresponding to the initial conditions for the entire grid: a temperature of 70 C
for all layers, a salinity of 103,300 ppm by weight as equivalent sodium chloride,
and a pressure of 292.4 bar at the mid-point elevation of the lower permeable layer.
As the NCG content is quite low and the reservoir pressure is much higher than the
brine bubble point pressure, the NCG content was neglected in the simulations.
716 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

The numerical simulations were performed by rst neglecting (case 1), then
including (case 2) heat exchange with the upper and lower conning beds. When
heat transfer was neglected (case 1), the dierences in breakthrough time between
the lower and upper layer were less than those obtained with RESSQ, owing to
the eect of heat conduction within the permeable layers and heat recharge from
the intercalated mudstone layer, and numerical dispersion. When the heat
exchange was included (case 2), the temperature reduction after the thermal
breakthrough was much lower than that obtained with RESSQ, due to the limited
thickness of the exploited permeable layers, which allows an important
contribution of heat recharge from cap and bedrocks. Fig. 10 shows, for
alternative B, as a function of time, the sandface temperature at the upper and
lower layers as well as the well production temperature resulting from the mixing
of uid discharged from the upper and lower layers. Temperature decline with
time shown in Fig. 10 is calculated both neglecting (case 1) and including (case 2)
the heat exchange with conning beds. Production temperature declines after
approximately 20 years when neglecting heat exchange, reaching about 63 C after
70 years. When including heat exchange (case 2), the production temperature
declines after approximately 30 years, reaching about 69 C after 70 years. Fig. 11
shows the lower layer reservoir temperatures for case 2 after 30 years of
exploitation. The isotherms, not exactly symmetrical with respect to the line
connecting GT-1 and GT-2, show the existence of grid orientation eects.
Additional simulations suggested that a distance of 1200 m between wells GT-3
and GT-4 and the existing wells is already sucient to achieve a thermal

Fig. 10. Doublet option B: simulated sandface temperature for the upper and lower layer and well
production temperature after uid mixing. Temperatures are computed neglecting (case 1) and
including (case 2) heat exchange with conning beds.
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 717

Fig. 11. Doublet option B: isotherms (in  C) in the lower permeable layer after 30 years of doublet
exploitation including heat exchange with conning beds (case 2). GT1 and GT-2: production wells;
GT-3 and GT-4: injection wells. Initial reservoir temperature: 70 C.

breakthrough greater than 25 years. This distance, at reservoir depth, would allow
the drilling of GT-3 and GT-4 directionally from a site located halfway between
GT-1 and GT-2, thus reducing surface piping length to 500 m for each well
doublet. Using the new wells as producers, the heat exchanger facilities could be
located in the same area close to production wellheads.

6.2. Use of two dierent aquifers as an alternative to the doublet exploitation scheme

The doublet scheme was suggested as an ecient exploitation method that

prevents environmental pollution, limits the extension of the area aected by uid
withdrawal and stabilises the pressure drawdown over time, whereas injection into
a dierent aquifer would imply the depletion of the exploited reservoir with
subsequent increase of pumping power requirements over time. Injection into a
dierent aquifer could be necessary at Skierniewice if future tests do not prove the
718 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

technical feasibility of injection into the Hettangian reservoir, even after thorough
brine surface treatment. In this case the Upper Toarcian aquifer, with a thickness
of about 160 m, a low shale content and homogeneous conditions over its whole
extension, is the optimal substitute target for injection.
For double aquifer exploitation, the increase of pumping requirements at the
production well could be critical in the Skierniewice area when considering the
high electric power required for conventional doublet operation. The pressure
drawdown at production well GT-2 was evaluated for the doublet GT-1GT-2,
for both an innite reservoir and one with the inferred fault, using the
AUTOMATE II computer code (Horne, 1990). In the case of the innite reservoir
for a production rate of 130 m3/h and for 8000 working hours per year, after
1 year of exploitation the drawdown at the producing well would be 4.4 bar higher
than in the conventional doublet case. The dierence increases to 6.6 bar after
25 years, thus requiring substantially higher pumping power. When the presence of
the no-ow boundary is taken into account, the pressure drawdown increases to
6.9 and 11.3 bar after 1 and 25 years, respectively. These negative eects are
partially counterbalanced by the fact that brine injection into the Toarcian
aquifer, in the absence of formation damage, could theoretically be performed
without the need of a pump. In fact, the modeling of injection into the Toarcian
aquifer, assuming no formation damage, suggested a bottomhole injection
pressure lower than the hydrostatic pressure exerted by the column of cold brine.
It was concluded that, in case brine injection into the Hettangian aquifer is not
technically feasible, injection into the Toarcian aquifer using well GT-1 appears to
be possible if the total production rate from the Hettangian is not greater than
100 m3/h. This alternative would also require a careful evaluation of heat-depleted
brine vs. native water compatibility and probably relevant brine processing prior
to injection.

7. Conclusions

The Hettangian reservoir is a complex multi-aquifer system displaying

signicant lateral and vertical changes in lithology and subsequent rock properties
that aect well doublet performance. Moreover, in locating new well doublets,
careful attention should be given to faults in the Lower Jurassic strata, because
they could be impervious, bounding the Hettangian aquifer during exploitation.
The presence of horizontally distributed heterogeneities suggests that the
multilayer Hettangian aquifer should be further investigated by running downhole
spinner logs during production tests to evaluate the contribution of each
intersected permeable layer. Preliminary evaluations of doublet performance that
neglected the conductive heat transfer with conning beds yielded far too
pessimistic results because of signicant heat recharge from the cap and bedrocks.
To properly account for the eects of horizontally-distributed heterogeneities and
of heat exchange with conning beds, the doublet exploitation forecasts in the
Skierniewice area require numerical reservoir modelling.
 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721 719

The Hettangian geothermal resource assessment (Aquater, 1997) also included

the simulation of well-bore ow under the predicted bottomhole conditions, an
analysis of downhole pumping system characteristics, power consumption cost
estimates, preliminary design and cost analysis of designing and constructing
surface facilities, and a design and cost analysis of new production and injection
wells (vertical and directional wells). The main results for the Skierniewice
municipality, assuming an injection temperature of 47 C, are as follows:
. Option A: using the existing wells GT-1 and GT-2, the suggested exploitation
rate for a doublet life of 25 years is 130 m3/h, requiring 200 kW for the electric
production pumps; exploited thermal power is 2.5 MW.
. Option B (case 1): using two additional vertical wells located 1500 m from GT-1
and GT-2: for a doublet life of 45 years, the suggested exploitation rate is 180 m3/
h, requiring 390 kW for the electric production pumps; exploited thermal power
is 3.5 MW for each doublet.
. Option B (case 2): using two additional directional wells tapping the reservoir
1200 m from GT-1 and GT-2: for a doublet life of 35 years, the suggested
exploitation rate is 180 m3/h, requiring 390 kW for the electric production
pumps; exploited thermal power is 3.5 MW for each doublet.
Some additional tests are deemed necessary before starting the exploitation of the
Hettangian reservoir using wells GT-1 and GT-2. It is necessary to further
investigate the mechanism of declining injectivity index during cold brine injection
by performing additional injection tests with proper downhole recording.
Additional measurements on Hettangian core samples to determine the average
pore radius as well as the pore size distribution are suggested, together with brine
ltering tests, to determine the optimal ltering procedures for the brine produced
by wells GT-1 and GT-2.

Acknowledgements

The District Heating Modernisation and Environment Project Skierniewice

Voievodship, Cities of Skierniewice and Zyrardow, was nanced by the World
Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development), with funding
support of the Governments of Holland and Italy. The authors wish to thank
Christian Duvigneau and Pawel Kaminski of the World Bank for permission to
publish this paper, as well as Paul Teleki, World Bank consultant, for his
suggestions and review of the paper. They also express their thanks to colleagues
of Aquater SpA, to members of the Faculty of Geology, Geophysics and
Environmental Protection, and to members of the Faculty of Oil and Gas
Engineering, University of Mining and Metallurgy of Krakow, for the processing
of geologic, geophysics, geochemical and hydrogeological data that provided the
basis for the reservoir engineering assessment. Thanks are also extended to
Marcelo Lippmann and Pierre Ungemach for their critical review of the paper.
720 A. Battistelli, S. Nagy / Geothermics 29 (2000) 701721

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