The Drill Down – A Sizzling Summer for GTO
Estimated read time: 7 minutes
 Director’s Note: Hey Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO) friends—I hope your summer is going well!
We are excited to invite you to our Quarterly Webinar on August 3 at 1:30 p.m. ET. As always, you will hear from myself and other GTO staffers. But we have a new element this time: a guest from Sandia National Laboratories will be joining the speaker lineup to highlight the availability of public data in the geothermal energy space. Hop to the Looking Ahead section for a sneak peek at the webinar agenda.
In other news, I am so proud of GTO’s Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) site—they successfully pushed water through an underground reservoir 1½ miles below the Earth’s surface! This means that FORGE is one step closer to providing a continuous flow of hot water that demonstrates the ability to produce electricity from geothermal energy. A full overview is available in GTO’s Latest.
Lastly, if you have questions, comments, or just something really awesome to share with GTO about the developments you’re seeing in the geothermal industry, email DOE.Geothermal@ee.doe.gov. We enjoy hearing from you 😊.
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Sincerely,
Lauren Boyd
GTO Acting Office Director
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Trivia Question: Which country has the most installed geothermal electricity-generating capacity?
GTO's Latest
Photo Credit: Eric Larson, Flash Point SLC
Utah FORGE’s Literal Breakthrough for the Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) Community
FORGE reached a significant milestone in Utah two weeks ago: the team confirmed the connectivity of the newly drilled production well and the existing injection well through the reservoir of fractures created via a multi-stage hydraulic fracturing process. The Salt Lake Tribune writes, “The project injected 1,800 barrels of water into one well at five barrels a minute and achieved success when it flowed along the horizontal pathway to travel up the production well.”
What does the future hold for FORGE? Additional reservoir stimulations and circulation testing are scheduled to keep the EGS project busy over the next year. Read more about the milestone from Deseret News and ThinkGeoEnergy, and check out what EERE Assistant Secretary Alejandro Moreno thinks about FORGE and the future of EGS.
GTO-Funded Research Identifies Opportunities to Streamline Geothermal Permitting Process and Its Nontechnical Deployment Barriers
Geothermal energy has a huge role to play in the clean energy transition, contributing to our efforts to lower energy costs and increase energy security. To help navigate the regulatory, social, and economic obstacles to that potential energy being deployed, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) conducted a study on existing geothermal energy operations and found that excess permitting steps, duplicative reviews, and more could be hindering the growth of the industry. Check out their findings along with NREL’s webinar and podcast featuring the report, and learn more on GTO’s new permitting webpage.
Geothermal Projects Part of DOE’s $72 Million in Selections for Small Business Research and Development Grants
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will provide $72 million to support 296 small business projects across 44 states. These projects, covering areas like renewable energy, cybersecurity, and advanced materials, align with President Biden's climate goals. The funding aims to foster innovation, strengthen America's scientific leadership, and accelerate the transition to a carbon-free grid by 2035 and net-zero emissions by 2050. GTO is proud to announce these four projects selected for Phase 1 funding under the “Long-Term Geothermal Reservoir Monitoring Strategies” Topic Area:
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MagiQ Technologies, Inc.―Optical Multi-Component Seismic Array for Long-Term Monitoring of Geothermal Wells
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Ozark Integrated Circuits, Inc.―High-Temperature Flow Rate Instrument for Geothermal Reservoir Monitoring
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Paulsson, Inc.―Laboratory Testing, Simulation, and Imaging of Fluid-Flow Generated Micro Seismic Data in Geothermal Reservoirs
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Petrolern LLC―Heat-Sweep Monitoring with Bubbled Water Seismic Imaging
Biden-Harris Administration Announces $90 Million to Support Resilient and Efficient Building Energy Codes
The Building Technologies Office announced $90 million to help states, cities, tribes, and partners implement updated energy codes. These awards, funded by the President's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will support 27 projects across 26 states and D.C. to ensure buildings meet the latest standards for energy efficiency and reduce energy costs for families and businesses.
 DOE Selectees Will Accelerate Adoption of Clean Energy Technologies, Including Geothermal
DOE announced up to $23 million for nine organizations to implement an Onsite Energy Technical Assistance Partnerships (TAPs) network that will reduce industrial emissions and move the nation toward a net-zero economy by 2050. By accelerating the integration and deployment of onsite clean energy technologies, the selectees—eight regional and one national—will drive U.S. industrial decarbonization, productivity, and competitiveness through multi-year technical assistance activities.
The Onsite Energy TAPs selectees will help facilities integrate the latest onsite energy technologies, including geothermal, by providing specialized technical assistance from initial site screenings to identifying onsite energy opportunities and offering more advanced analysis to support project installations.
 WGA members, including Colorado Governor and WGA 2023 Chair Jared Polis, receive a tour of the NREL campus. Photo credit: Joe DelNero/NREL
Now Available: The Heat Beneath Our Feet Initiative Report
The Western Governors Association (WGA) released the Heat Beneath Our Feet Initiative report after engaging with over 500 stakeholders through online surveys, tours, work sessions, and a webinar series focused on geothermal development. The report shows progress states have made in examining opportunities for and barriers to the accelerated development and deployment of geothermal energy technologies across the West. The Colorado Sun and Longmont Leader both highlighted the report, and The Denver Gazette recapped WGA’s Annual Meeting, attended by DOE Deputy Secretary David Turk.
Share Your Enhanced Geothermal Shot™ Roadmap Feedback
Have you explored the introduction to the Enhanced Geothermal Shot™ roadmap that we presented at the Enhanced Geothermal Shot™ Summit? GTO needs your ideas, questions, and comments to help ensure that the roadmap drives EGS towards the goals of the Enhanced Geothermal Shot™. Email EGShotRoadmap@ee.doe.gov to share your thoughts, and view the the summit recording for more information.
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