Geothermal Energy: Latest Developments for this “Hot” Contributor to U.S. Energy Production

The Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) came together to discuss the latest developments in geothermal energy and what this means for the country’s energy future. This second annual briefing featured representatives from the private, government, and nonprofit sectors who traveled from around the country to share their expertise. The event highlighted cutting edge reports and technological innovations that have made – and continue to make – geothermal a renewable success story. Growing rapidly, capacity is estimated to double in the United States over the next five years, with hundreds of thousands more megawatts of potential to be tapped. Will today’s advances be looked upon as the starting point for the future’s sustainable energy economy? Will federal policies support or hinder achieving the potential of this reliable, renewable resource? These questions sparked this critical discussion.

Geothermal power projects are under development in a record number of states across the West and in Gulf states , and businesses and the media are talking about this “hot” prospect. Several new reports that will be discussed at this briefing underscore its tremendous potential:

• GEA released a report in February 2006 that finds extensive undeveloped geothermal resources in 14 Western states – Alaska , Arizona , California , Colorado , Hawaii , Idaho , Montana, Nevada , New Mexico , Oregon , Texas , Utah , Washington , and Wyoming . An Executive Summary (12 pages) and Full Report (140 pages) are both available here. (An Assessment of Geothermal Resource Development Needs in the Western United States , by Daniel Fleischmann)
• Initiated by Dr. Roy Mink, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory published a Technical Report in November 2006 defining the “enormous potential of geothermal resources.” This document looks at what the full range of geothermal energy technologies could contribute by 2015, 2025 and 2050.
• Geothermal—The Energy Under Our Feet
• An MIT-led study released in January 2007 found “that mining the huge amounts of heat that reside as stored thermal energy in the Earth's hard rock crust could supply a substantial portion of the electricity the United States will need in the future, probably at competitive prices and with minimal environmental impact.”

Executive Summary and the full MIT report, The Future of Geothermal Energy

Also, Chena Hot Springs and UTC Power, a United Technologies Company, were co-recipients of the renewable Project of the Year Award from Power Engineering Magazine in 2006. To learn more about how this community is realizing its vision to become self-sufficient and sustainable in terms of energy, food, heating and fuel use, click here.