Sulík and Polaček agreed. 50 million are needed for the well, they promise heat in five years – Korzár Košice

KOŠICE. The trial operation of a hot water pipeline from a geothermal source near the village of Ďurkov to the Košice Heating Plant (TEKO) could begin in the metropolis of the East at the beginning of 2026.

By obtaining 20 percent of energy exclusively from renewable sources, the project will help dampen heat production from hard coal.

The estimated cost should be around € 50 million.

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This resulted from information presented by interested parties on Friday at the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation in the field of using the energy potential of geothermal wells in the Ďurkov locality for the needs of heat supply in the city of Košice.

One of the best in Slovakia

The geothermal zone located near Košice between the villages of Ďurkov, Svinica, Olšovany and Bidovce is one of the best in Slovakia.

Three exploratory wells were excavated there in 1998 and 1999. The water temperature at a depth of about 3,000 meters reaches 135 degrees Celsius at the mouth of the wells.

In order for the geothermal springs to be used for heating, they will need to be modified and also the construction of an approximately 20-kilometer hot water pipeline.

A memorandum signed by the Minister of Economy on Friday Richard Sulík (SaS), Chairman of the Board of Geoterm and also a representative of SPP Infrastructure Roland Karkó and the Mayor of Košice Jaroslav Polaček (independent) in the presence of the General Director of TEKO Milan Habán, obliges the participants to cooperate in the construction of the system and in the operation of technical and technological equipment enabling the extraction and use of geothermal water for heat production.

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Stakeholders will try to secure the financial resources needed for the implementation of the project from public sources.

The priority should be to obtain funding from the Fair Transformation Fund, which wants to help ecologically burdened regions with the transition to a climate-neutral economy through Eurofunds.

“It is no secret that we at the Ministry of Economy are interested in making the most of geothermal energy. Its potential in this area is really great, because it is one of the best geothermal zones in Slovakia, “said Sulík.

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Polaček also believes that in 2026 a positive effect on prices

The mayor of Košice recalled not only the economic but also the ecological dimension of the project.

“I am glad that by signing the memorandum today, we have taken a huge step towards making Košice a more environmentally friendly city and to significantly reduce emissions from burning coal, thus improving the quality of the air. I firmly believe that from 2026 we will be able to heat Košice with geothermal energy from Ďurkov, which will also have a positive effect on heat prices in our country, “said Polaček on Friday.

According to Karkó, Geoterm also undertook to drill three more geothermal deep wells at the site.

“I believe that we will revive one of the largest geothermal projects in Central Europe near Košice,” he reminded.

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Geoterm Košice is the holder of the exploration area in the given area. The largest shareholder of this company with a share of almost 96% is the joint-stock company SPP Infrastructure, which is owned by the state-owned Slovak Gas Industry (SPP) and the energy group EPH.

According to Geotherm Košice, the usable amount of geothermal energy in the Ďurkov locality represents a maximum thermal output of 35 MWt. The functionality of these underground collectors is currently estimated at a minimum of 40 years.

Record from the signing of the memorandum in Košice

You can read the most important news from the east of Slovakia at Korzar.sme.sk. All news from Košice can be found at Košice Corsair