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| Efeler 1 Gathering System, by Kristi McGinley - 3rd Place GRC Photo Contest 2016 Well pad to power plant snapshot of the Efeler 1 gathering system located in Germencik, Turkey. Owner and operator Gurmat. |
Turkey is an emerging superstar in the geothermal energy field thanks to a combination of its underground resources and a stable tariff regime. Other countries in Southeast Europe can’t hope to emulate the kind of investment seen in Turkey, the site of some of the world’s largest geothermal power plants, but they too are increasingly harnessing underground energy to provide cheap and eco-friendly local heating and energy.
A utility-scale geothermal power plant may be beyond the reach of most of the Balkan countries northwest of Turkey, but this hasn’t stopped them looking to tap their more modest geothermal resources for example for district heating, or to power greenhouses. And the region has long used thermal waters for spas, from the Ottoman era Turkish baths in Budapest to Europe’s largest waterpark, the brand new Therme in the outskirts of Bucharest.