Today, the U.S. Department of Energy released a groundbreaking analysis detailing how the United States can benefit from the vast potential of geothermal energy.
The analysis culminated in a report, GeoVision: Harnessing the Heat Beneath Our Feet, which summarizes findings showing that geothermal electricity generation could increase more than 26-fold from today—reaching 60 gigawatts (GW) of installed capacity by 2050. In addition to describing electricity-generation opportunities, the GeoVision analysis also shows how geothermal can enhance heating and cooling solutions for American residential and commercial consumers through direct-use and heat-pump technologies.
In the electric sector, under business as usual, geothermal generation capacity will grow to 6 GW by 2050. By accelerating geothermal development timelines, geothermal capacity could more than double from business as usual, to 13 GW. Geothermal capacity could increase even further—to 60 GW—by combining faster development timelines with technology improvements.
In the non-electric sector, technology improvements could enable more than 17,500 geothermal district-heating installations nationwide, and 28 million U.S. households could realize cost-effective heating and cooling solutions through the use of geothermal heat pumps.
- Executive Summary
- Chapter 1: Developing the GeoVision
- Chapter 2: What is Geothermal Energy?
- Chapter 3: GeoVision Analysis: Models and Scenarios
- Chapter 4: GeoVision Analysis: Results, Opportunities, and Impacts
- Chapter 5: The GeoVision Roadmap: A Pathway Forward
- References and Appendices
- Full Report
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There will be special panels and presentations of the GeoVision Report at the GRC Annual Meeting & Expo, September 15-18 in Palm Springs, California, USA.
There will be special panels and presentations of the GeoVision Report at the GRC Annual Meeting & Expo, September 15-18 in Palm Springs, California, USA.
