Geothermal energy could surpass nuclear energy

Geothermal energy is having its moment in the sun. Heat from the Earth’s core can provide humans with a clean, constant, and limitless source of renewable energy. The trick is finding the right technology to harness that heat.

Until recently, commercial geothermal energy was only possible in places where the heat naturally reaches the Earth’s surface, such as geysers and hot springs. Iceland, for example, gets a quarter of its energy from geothermal energy. But Iceland is a geological anomaly. Globally, geothermal energy accounts for just 0.5% renewable energyBut now, the use of fracking technology borrowed from the oil and gas sector could completely revolutionize the availability of geothermal energy, and perhaps even bring it to your backyard.

Geothermal energy can be tapped anywhere and everywhere, if you have the will and the way to dig deep enough. And it may soon be possible on an economically viable scale, thanks to a method known as “enhanced geothermal systems,” which can tap heat far, far underground. According to 2023 report from Esquire, the technology, adapted from hydraulic fracturing used in the oil and gas industry, “will allow us to exploit the energy beneath our feet all across the country, all with a tiny carbon footprint compared to most of the sources we rely on now.” These deep wells would pump out hot water that could then be used to produce energy through a variety of methods before being injected back into the ground.

The potential of improved geothermal energy is huge – even The Economist projects that it could surpass nuclear power production while offering similar benefits. Like nuclear power, geothermal energy operates on proven technologies, offers base-load, on-demand power, and emits no carbon dioxide emissions. The U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) has projected that geothermal energy could power up to 260 million homes nationwide by 2050.

It also has important bipartisan appeala huge boon for any new technology that hopes to receive significant and ongoing funding from both government and private entities. DoE projects that Just $25 billion in public-private investment (less than the cost of the Vogtle nuclear plant alone) by 2030 would allow the nation’s geothermal sector to “peak” and prepare the industry for commercial scale by mid-century. The federal government is already funding research that proves early-stage geothermal technology and sets the stage for a privatized acceleration of research and development.

Just this month, representatives from major oil companies and tech startups, as well as scientists and climate groups, gathered in Houston to kick off a $10 million series of summits aimed at leveraging the experience and technology gleaned from the oil and gas sector to “build a new pillar of the American energy sector“And a vibrant geothermal startup scene has appeared in Texas, and the stars are favoring a rapid increase in the share of geothermal energy in the U.S. energy mix.

Despite a groundswell of support for improved geothermal technologies and optimism from both the private and public sectors, the geothermal sector still has a long way to go to reach its potential. “As it stands, the geothermal sector faces the typical problems of emerging industries: difficulty raising enough money for projects that, while promising, have yet to prove themselves,” The Hill recently reported.

But if successful, the potential applications and impacts of commercial-scale geothermal energy are nearly limitless. It would introduce a critical new source of reliable, carbon-free energy into the energy mix and provide a potential solution to some of our most pressing energy security problems. Already, experts say that geothermal energy could meet the insatiable energy needs of artificial intelligenceand also providing a way to produce green hydrogen cheaplywhich could be crucial in decarbonization sectors difficult to limit such as truck transport, maritime transport, aviation, iron and steel and the chemical and petrochemical industry.

By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com

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