One Step Forward & One Step Back - The Attempted Growth of Geothermal Power (North America Clean Energy)
As a baseload, renewable power provider, one would think geothermal energy would have quite the pull. Once fully engineered and established, a geothermal power plant can generate reliable power around the clock with minimal costs. It also fills the intermittency gaps other renewables face, such as with wind or solar power. However, no new geothermal power plants were put online in the United States in 2014. And Canada has yet to see any commercial power plants whatsoever, which leads to the question: why isn't geothermal energy gaining more popularity in North America?
Despite a lack of new added capacity in the United States this past year, it is worth noting that the US still remains in the top three in terms of countries with installed geothermal power capacity (alongside the Philippines and Indonesia). California provides nearly 80% of the 3,440 megawatts (MW) of US geothermal capacity, and another 16% is found in Nevada.
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