Geothermal

GA Drilling, ZeroGeo Energy Collaborate on Deep Geothermal Power Project. Geothermal drilling technology company GA Drilling and ZeroGeo Energy GmbH in February announced the companies have a memorandum of

The Earth is a tremendous source of power. We’re sitting on a dynamic ball of fire, from which only a few regions have been able to extract energy since the 15th century. In recent decades, geothermal has been heralded as the most promising clean energy option and also a disappointment for the lack of implementation. […]

Independent power company Globeleq and Kenya’s state-owned Geothermal Development Co. (GDC) are readying to launch construction of the 35-MW Menengai II geothermal project in Kenya’s Nakuru County. When completed in 2025, the power project will become the second to come online in the wider Menengai complex in Kenya’s geothermal-rich Rift Valley region. Globeleq and GDC […]

Life cycle analysis or assessments (LCAs) are a quintessential tool for power and utility industry professionals and tradespeople. They determine the environmental and financial value of new technologies. Consumer products get the most attention, but LCAs for renewable energy systems (Figure 1) should be discussed more. It is time to synthesize known information to create […]

A pioneering 3.5-MW enhanced geothermal system (EGS) in northern Nevada that demonstrated the ability to drill, complete, and operate horizontal wells is now operational. Project Red, co-developed by Fervo Energy and Google under a partnership forged in 2021 under the “world’s first corporate agreement to develop an enhanced geothermal power project,” is supplying power to […]

U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said the agency’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is developing 15 new renewable energy installations across the western U.S., including some that recently have begun commercial operation. Haaland provided an update on the projects Nov. 6 as she addressed the Western Governors Association Winter Meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Haaland […]

Italian power and gas giant Enel Group has agreed to sell its entire geothermal power portfolio in the U.S., along with several small solar plants, to Ormat Technologies for $271 million. The multinational’s 2008-founded renewables subsidiary, Enel Green Power, on Oct. 23 said it reached an agreement with Reno, Nevada–headquartered Ormat for the sale of […]

Extreme temperature and weather events have become more prevalent in the past decade. The December 2022 Christmas freeze in the southeast U.S. saw many areas experiencing single-digit temperatures. The February 2021 Texas freeze saw temperatures in Dallas reach as low as –2F. Meanwhile, the January–February 2019 Midwest Arctic Polar Vortex saw temperatures plunge as low […]

In the common global quest for sustainable and renewable energy sources, traditional oil and gas producers are beginning to focus on alternative sources. Geothermal is emerging as one of the most promising renewable energy sources globally, and over the coming years will become an essential component of the overall power market. Power producers’ embrace of […]

Power industry professionals searching for valuable data and insights on U.S. power plants will find a wealth of information in the POWER Plant ID (Intelligence Database) research tool. Data available includes plant locations, capacities, generation types, ownership breakdown, production history, emissions data, and more.   HOUSTON/AUSTIN, Texas (July 18, 2023) — POWER, the leading power […]

KEPCO Wants to Extend Operations of Two Reactors. Japanese utility Kansai Electric Power Co. (KEPCO) in April asked Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) for permission to extend the lifespan of Units 3

A pioneering 21-MW power project that economically produces geothermal power with co-produced hydrocarbon fluids from an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) operation is now commercially operating in Alberta, Canada

The spectrum of geothermal technologies is quickly evolving. This supplement to POWER’s April 2023 feature, “Startups Are Shaking Up Geothermal Power’s Potential,” briefly explains the differences between some engineered geothermal systems. Conventional geothermal energy is largely produced by hydrothermal systems, which consist of hot water circulated in deep-seated permeable rocks. Resource temperature ranges from high (greater […]

Driven by ripe market conditions, technology startups are injecting investment and innovation into geothermal power to unlock novel applications that could substantially scale up the niche renewable power

Kenya is readying to kick off construction of the 35-MW Menengai geothermal power project in Nakuru County as part of the first phase of the wider Menengai complex, the country’s second large-scale geothermal field developed after Olkaria. The project is being developed by Globeleq, an Africa-focused independent power producer and project developer that is 70% […]

The Department of Energy has moved to fund up to seven pilot enhanced geothermal system (EGS) projects to demonstrate different geologic settings, a variety of development techniques, and different well orientations. The U.S. agency on Feb. 8 announced up to $74 million to support the EGS pilots, for which the November 2021–enacted Infrastructure Act designates […]

Geothermal Plant Planned in Colombia. Colombian petroleum company Ecopetrol in December announced plans to build a 250-kW geothermal power plant in the Apiay oil complex in Meta, Colombia. The power plant will

REDWOOD CITY, CA – Jan. 24, 2023 – Peninsula Clean Energy is moving forward with energy storage, geothermal, wind and small hydropower projects that will assist the agency’s industry leading effort to provide customers with renewable power on an hourly basis. Nova III will be Peninsula Clean Energy’s first stand-alone storage project and will provide […]

SAN FRANCISCO, California – January 10, 2023 – GreenFire Energy Inc. and CPC Corporation, Taiwan (“CPC”), have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to work together to develop geothermal projects in Taiwan. This agreement enables both companies to collaborate on future geothermal projects and further Taiwan’s progress towards its Net Zero Emission 2050 goal. The […]

Every month, POWER magazine publishes several articles in its Global Monitor section covering topics important to the electric power generation industry. The articles typically feature interesting updates on progress made at notable projects around the world, big policy changes, or promising research and development (R&D) news. Short notes about major contracts are also touched on […]

HOUSTON/STOCKHOLM, Dec. 14, 2022 – Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX), through its Chevron New Energies business, and Baseload Capital have announced a joint venture to develop geothermal projects in the United States. The two companies will collaborate on driving geothermal opportunities – including identifying the best prospects for development, operations and progressing the next generation of geothermal […]

Mitsubishi Power is expanding its geothermal infrastructure in Indonesia. The company has received an order from PT Pertamina Geothermal Energy (PGE), a subsidiary of the state-owned oil and gas group PT Pertamina, for construction of a 55-MW unit at the Lumut Balai Unit 2 geothermal power station. The order is for a steam turbine, generator, […]

Solar + wind, solar + storage, wind + storage—even fossil fuels combined with renewable energy—are supporting the growth of hybrid power plants that are breaking the norms of traditional power generation

It’s always difficult to select winners from the field of nominations submitted to POWER for its annual awards, and this year was no exception. The Wudongde Hydropower Station was the big winner, while

Mount Kisco, New York  (Nov. 15, 2022) – Dandelion Energy, the nation’s leading residential geothermal company, today announced the closure of a $70M B1 funding round co-led by LENX, the corporate venture arm of Lennar, one of the nation’s leading homebuilders, and NGP ETP, the energy transition investing platform of NGP. The funding round included […]

JX Nippon Acquires NRG’s Share of Petra Nova Carbon Capture Plant for $3.6 Million. ENEOS Group, a Japanese energy and non-ferrous metals business group that owns JX Nippon Oil and Gas Exploration, will

–Climate tech panelists discuss field’s huge potential and challenges CAMBRIDGE, MA–Geothermal energy—the heat deep below our feet—has the potential to become the workhorse of the energy transition as it grows from supplying just 0.4 percent of the world’s energy today to upward of 20, 30, and even 50 percent by 2050. That’s according to the […]

The Department of Energy’s (DOE)’s latest Energy Earthshot will seek to cut the cost of enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) to $45/MWh by 2035, an ambitious goal that would shave current EGS costs by 90%. The DOE’s latest Energy Earthshot—part of a 2021-research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) initiative it launched to accelerate breakthroughs for emerging technologies—will […]

The Svartsengi plant in Iceland has operated for decades, and continues to build its legacy as the facility’s electricity generation and hot water support new businesses and provide a remarkable example of

The first geothermal power plant built in more than three decades within the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) balancing authority has come online. Mammoth Pacific Geothermal, an Ormat Co. subsidiary, declared the 30-MW Casa Diablo IV (CD4) commercially operational on July 20. CD4 is located on public land two miles east of the Town of […]