An international research project aims to assess the potential of geothermal energy as a replacement for coal-powered heating in Germany’s western state North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW).
“Roll-out of Deep Geothermal Energy in North-western Europe” is co-funded by the European Union and will look into the large-scale use of geothermal energy in four countries. “The Rhenish region (in NRW) should become a model for the switch to modern, innovative and climate-friendly industry,” NRW’s economy minister Andreas Pinkwart said in a press release from the Geothermal Research Centre Bochum.
Working with industry partners including energy company RWE, researchers aim just how much geothermal energy would be available NRW -- thought to be more than anywhere else in Europe. A first deep-drilling trial will be carried out near the Weisweiler coal plant, which currently provides much of the energy used for heating in western NRW.