Friday, February 1, 2019

USA, Nevada: Legislators Talk Up Geothermal Energy on Visit to GRC Annual Meeting & Expo Host Site

Lawmakers Tour Peppermill Geothermal Plant (KTVN)

This evening, lawmakers and energy experts from across the state toured the facility.  Tapping into Nevada's geothermal resources is a topic on the docket for the next legislative session that starts on Monday and the Peppermill project is an example of how to do just that.

"We're abundant in geothermal, solar and wind," said State Senator Chris Brooks. "We don't have any fossil fuels; we spend $8 billion a year to import fossil fuels and projects like this one and properties like this demonstrate what's possible if you invest in Nevada. "It's a clean, year-round energy resource. You can't export it and the jobs stay right here. I'm glad to see this company took a gamble and it's really paid off over the years."

There's been a lot of talk about solar projects in past legislative sessions but geothermal has been largely overlooked.

"One of the things here in Nevada we have not used to its full advantage is geothermal," said State Senator Pat Spearman. "We have more geothermal than California but we have not looked at ways we can exploit that resource and make sure we use it in conjunction with wind and solar. I'm excited because I have a bill that's going to do just that."