Poor rock kills Sparta deep hydro plan

摘要

Poor geology has forced US hydropower developer Riverbank Power Corp to cancel its plan for a major underground complex near Sparta, New Jersey.rnRiverbank said that analysis of early data from the initial drill tests at Limecrest Quarry site showed the proposed site to be unsuitable for the grid of tunnels and caverns. The project was announced at the beginning of the year (T&TI, February, p14).rnExcavations would have taken place at a depth of 61 Om to hold arnpowerhouse and enable water to be circulated in a closed-loop with the flooded quarry above.rnThe design of the standard, "Aquabank" pumped storage package would provide a large power capacity facility (1GW) for a private equity spend of US$2bn. Construction would take four years.