News

The 30th annual session of the UNU-GTP opened on 16th April 2008. This year 22 UNU Fellows participate in the six month specialized courses. They come from China 5, Costa Rica 1, Djibouti 1, El Salvador 2, Eritrea 1, Ethiopia 1, Indonesia 2, Jordan 1, Kenya 1, Mexico 1, Nicaragua 1, Rwanda 1, Tanzania 1, Uganda 1, and Yemen 2. They will be trained in: Geothermal Utilization 7, Chemistry of Thermal Fluids 3, Environmental Studies 3, Reservoir Engineering 3, Geological Exploration 3, Borehole Geophysics 2, and Drilling Technology 1.

United Nations University Geothermal Training Programme (UNU-GTP) in Iceland, the Tianjin Bureau of Land Resources and Real Estate Management (TBLRREM), and the Tianjin Bureau of Geology and Minerals Exploration and Development (TBGMED) will be hosting "Workshop for Decision Makers on Direct Heating Use of Geothermal Resources in Asia", to be held at the Renaissance Tianjin TEDA Hotel, Tianjin, China, 11-18 May, 2008.

The 2007 Short Course for Central American countries was held in Santa Tecla, El Salvador, 25 November – 2 December. The Course dealt with geothermal development in Central America with special focus on resource assessment and environmental management. In addition to lectures and debates on the subjects, there were practical excercises (several working groups) in reservoir resource assessments of geothermal fields from several countries and in environmental management planning for specific geothermal fields.

The 2007 Short Course for the East African countries was held in Kenya 2-17 November at Lake Bogoria Hotel and Lake Naivasha Simba Lodge. Its aim was to give an overview of methods used in surface exploration, to pass on knowledge of the status of surface geothermal exploration in East Africa and to further the geothermal co-operation between the East African countries.

The closing ceremony of the 29th annual session of the UNU-GTP was held on October 12th 2007. Twenty one UNU Fellows from fourteen countries completed the traditional six month specialized geothermal courses this year. They come from Albania 1, China 1, Costa Rica 1, El Salvador 3, Eritrea 1, Ethiopia 2, Indonesia 2, Iran 3, Jordan 1, Kenya 2, Nicaragua 1, Russia 1, Tanzania 1, and Uganda 1.

Presentations were given by the twenty one UNU Fellows in Orkugarður on October 3rd 2007. Each presentation was of 10 minutes duration and covered methodology, results and conclusions of the individual research project.