US DOE announces $60M funding for three EGS projects

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced the selection of three projects that will receive up to $60 million to demonstrate the efficacy and scalability of enhanced geothermal systems (EGS). The three projects are:

• Chevron New Energies—This EGS pilot demonstration will use innovative drilling and stimulation techniques to access geothermal energy near an existing geothermal field in Sonoma County in northern California.
• Fervo Energy—This pilot within the Milford Renewable Energy Corridor in Utah and adjacent to the DOE’s Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) field laboratory aims to produce at least 8 megawatts of power from each of three wells at a site with no existing commercial geothermal power production.
• Mazama Energy—This project will demonstrate a first-of-its-kind super-hot EGS (temperatures above 375°C) on the western flank of Newberry Volcano in Oregon. This demonstration will help advance the science needed to operate in extreme heat conditions.

These projects are the first round of selections under the EGS Pilot Demonstrations funding opportunity announcement. The second-round funding opportunity will cover EGS demonstrations in the eastern United States.  The projects are funded by DOE’s Geothermal Technologies Office in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

The funding is aligned with the Biden Administration’s Investing in America agenda and supports the goals of DOE’s Enhanced Geothermal Shot, which seeks to cuts the cost of EGS by 90% by 2035.

“These projects will help us advance geothermal power, including into regions of the country where this renewable resource has never before been used,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “With significant investment from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, these pilot demonstrations will help us realize the full potential of the heat beneath our feet to reduce carbon emissions, create domestic jobs, and deliver clean, cost-effective, reliable energy to American nationwide.” 

A recent DOE analysis indicates that advancing EGS can provide 90 GW of firm, flexible power to the U.S. grid by 2050 – enough to power the equivalent of more than 65 million homes – as well as support heating and cooling solutions nationwide. Improving and derisking EGS technologies and reducing their cost can help the nation realize this potential, making geothermal electricity a clean, cost-effective option across the country while spurring progress toward the Administration’s goals of a carbon-free grid by 2035 and net-zero emissions by 2050.

Source: US Department of Energy