Hydraulic fracturing is commonly applied in the hydrocarbon industry to 
stimulate the production. From the literature in the hydrocarbon industry, 
guidelines can be distilled on the selection of wells that are most suitable for 
such treatments, for a proper operation of the treatment, and for an adequate 
assessment of the result. In this presentation, some of the operational lessons 
learnt in the hydrocarbon industry will be transferred to geothermal 
applications. Many issues have similar characteristics, like the economics, the 
geomechanics, and the productivity assessment. There are, however, also 
differences. Important differences can be found in the temperature effect, the 
dual-porosity characteristics of geothermal reservoirs, the type of fluids used, 
and the required coupling of hydraulic and geomechanical properties of the 
reservoir. The presentation will focus on hydraulic fracture treatments and 
adress reservoir and geomechanical issues, and present some operational 
guidelines for testing and evaluation. In particular the recent hydrocarbon 
experience with very low-permeability reservoir will be adressed.

Grensasvegur 9
Reykjavik,
Iceland