GEOPHIRES/tests/examples/Fervo_Project_Red-2026.txt at main · softwareengineerprogrammer/GEOPHIRES · GitHub

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# Case Study: Fervo Project Red (2026 Update)
# See documentation: https://softwareengineerprogrammer.github.io/GEOPHIRES/Fervo_Project_Red.html
# 2026 updates derived from https://fervoenergy.com/enhanced-geothermal-has-been-proven-at-scale-heres-what-two-years-of-production-data-show/
# Paper references are to "Commercial-Scale Demonstration of a First-of-a-Kind Enhanced Geothermal System." (Norbeck & Latimer, 2023) (https://doi.org/10.31223/X52X0B).

# *** SURFACE & SUBSURFACE TECHNICAL PARAMETERS ***
# *************************************************
Reservoir Model, 1
Reservoir Volume Option, 1

Reservoir Depth, 7600 foot, -- per the paper

Reservoir Density, 2800, -- per the paper phyllite + quartzite + diorite + granodiorite
Reservoir Heat Capacity, 1000, -- [J/kg/K]
Reservoir Thermal Conductivity, 2.7

Number of Segments, 1
Gradient 1, 76.1

Number of Fractures, 65, -- Fervo estimates between 75 and 100 fractures were created. This value is de-rated in the model to account for the physical reality of imperfect flow distribution and uneven utilization across the entire stimulated rock volume (Norbeck and Latimer, 2023).
Fracture Shape, 4, -- Rectangular geometry (Shape 4), representing standard transverse hydraulic fractures along a horizontal wellbore.
Fracture Height, 300 foot, -- Estimated vertical propagation of the stimulated fracture network.
Fracture Width, 365 foot, -- Set to match the distance between the injection and production wellbores, assuming a dipole flow field directly connecting the laterals.
Fracture Separation, 10, -- The modeled physical spacing between individual transverse fractures along the lateral section.

Plant Outlet Pressure, 1500 psi, -- per the paper

Number of Injection Wells, 1
Number of Production Wells, 1

Well Geometry Configuration, 4
Multilaterals Cased, True
Number of Multilateral Sections, 2, -- Two parallel horizontal sections
Nonvertical Length per Multilateral Section, 3250 feet, -- per the paper

Production Flow Rate per Well, 36, -- per https://fervoenergy.com/enhanced-geothermal-has-been-proven-at-scale-heres-what-two-years-of-production-data-show/
Production Wellhead Pressure, 225 psi, -- per https://fervoenergy.com/enhanced-geothermal-has-been-proven-at-scale-heres-what-two-years-of-production-data-show/

Production Well Diameter, 4.276, -- Assumed ID for 5 inch casing size per https://fervoenergy.com/enhanced-geothermal-has-been-proven-at-scale-heres-what-two-years-of-production-data-show/
Injection Well Diameter, 4.276, -- See Production Well Diameter

Well Separation, 365 feet, -- per the paper

Injection Temperature, 75, -- per https://fervoenergy.com/enhanced-geothermal-has-been-proven-at-scale-heres-what-two-years-of-production-data-show/. Note that this value is overridden by the lower model-calculated optimum injection temperature.
Injection Wellbore Temperature Gain, 3, -- [degC]
Ramey Production Wellbore Model, 1

Injectivity Index, 0.59, -- Calibrated to yield ~0.7 MW Average Pumping Power
Productivity Index, 0.49, -- See Injectivity Index

Water Loss Fraction, 0.3, -- per https://fervoenergy.com/enhanced-geothermal-has-been-proven-at-scale-heres-what-two-years-of-production-data-show/

Utilization Factor, .9
Maximum Drawdown, 1, -- no redrilling considered

Ambient Temperature, 10.27
Surface Temperature, 10.27

End-Use Option, 1, -- electricity as the main product
Plant Lifetime, 2, -- 614 days of operation from April 2023 to April 2026
Power Plant Type, 2, -- supercritical binary cycle

End-Use Efficiency Factor, .9
Circulation Pump Efficiency, 0.80, -- per the paper

# *** ECONOMIC/FINANCIAL PARAMETERS ***
# *************************************
Economic Model, 5, -- SAM Single Owner PPA economic model
Inflation Rate, .027, -- US inflation as of December 2025

Starting Electricity Sale Price, 0.095
Electricity Escalation Rate Per Year, 0.00057, -- Calibrated to reach $100/MWh at project year 11
Ending Electricity Sale Price, 1, -- Note that this value does not directly determine price at the end of the project life, but rather as a cap as the maximum price to which the starting price can escalate.
Electricity Escalation Start Year, 1

Fraction of Investment in Bonds, 0.7
Discount Rate, 0.12
Inflated Bond Interest Rate, .07
Inflated Bond Interest Rate During Construction, 0.105

Investment Tax Credit Rate, 0.3
Combined Income Tax Rate, .2555
Property Tax Rate, 0.0022

Construction Years, 1
Construction CAPEX Schedule, 0.014,0.027,0.139,0.431,0.389

Well Drilling Cost Correlation, 10, -- per the drill cost paper - works out to $400/ft

# *** SIMULATION PARAMETERS ***
# *****************************
Print Output to Console, 1
Time steps per year, 100