October 5, 2009

Reno’s Peppermill Resort Pumps $8.1M into Geothermal

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Tapping into clean renewable geothermal energy, the Peppermill Resort Spa Casino in Reno, Nev., has a solution to cover 100 percent of the facility’s hot water and mechanical heat.

Drilling 4,400 feet into the ground, the resort, which lies in the middle of the city, has found a geothermal resource that exceeds its operating requirements, according to a press release.

The 2.1 million square foot facility required a geothermal system that could pump a minimum of 800 gallons a minute at 80-90 psi, with a temperature of at least 170 degrees.

“With this well, we found that and more,” said Dean Parker, Facilities Director at Peppermill.

The project, which cost $8.1 million, should go live in January, he said.

By tying the facility’s HVAC system into the geothermal well, Peppermill Resort said it is the only hotel in the U.S. to be 100 percent heated by on-location geothermal.

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Reader Comments

Another example of how capital expenditures in sustainability make basic economic sense. The Peppermill will most likely recover the $8.1 million investment in less than one year.

Actually, they estimate an annual savings of 1 million dollars. Still not bad though.

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