The Drill Down – With Geothermal, Harvest Season is Year-Round
Estimated read time: 6 minutes
Acting Director’s Note: GTO Stakeholders,
Happy Fall! Wherever you are, I hope you’re enjoying the seasonal transition. Whether it’s the changing foliage, the hints of cinnamon and apple cider in the air, or breaking out your favorite flannel, I hope you're taking advantage of the long-awaited break from the summer heat.
As GTO kicked off a new fiscal year earlier this month, many of our team headed to Reno, Nevada, for the 2023 Geothermal Rising Conference (GRC). Though the GTO booth didn’t make it to the conference, GTO staff who attended were delighted to meet up with so many colleagues working in geothermal, particularly the principal investigators and teams working on GTO-funded projects. It was also exciting to see so much diversity in the slate of speakers and the technologies represented. GTO staff received a lot of questions and excitement about GTO initiatives, particularly GEODE, Community GEO, Drilling Demos, and FedGeo.
GTO is honored to be providing funding to a community conducting the innovative research we celebrated at GRC and developing and demonstrating geothermal technologies to bring geothermal everywhere. If you are interested in receiving updates more frequently than once a month, please subscribe to our GTO news email list, and please also register to join our next quarterly webinar on November 30 to hear the latest from GTO leadership.
Time to dig into The Drill Down!
Cullen Henderson
Trivia Question: What often accounts for more than 50% of a geothermal project’s total costs?
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Passion, Challenge, and Inspiration: How the First Geothermal INTERN Cohort Came to Geothermal
Play Fairway Analysis in the Spotlight with Two New Reports
Borrowed from oil and gas exploration, Play Fairway Analysis (PFA) uses quantitative geoscience data to identify prospective geothermal trends for further exploration. This month, the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) released two new reports highlighting findings in GTO-funded PFA research:
Your Input is Needed to Help Create Analysis and Data Tools that Work for You!
NREL is gathering input on how geothermal stakeholders use data and analysis tools, what frustrations or limitations they see, what data visualizations are most useful, and what’s important when sharing data publicly. Help shape the future of data and analytical tools by responding to the survey!
DOE Announces $264 Million for Research to Support Energy Earthshots™
On September 29, DOE’s Office of Science announced $264 million in funding for 29 projects to develop solutions for the scientific challenges underlying DOE’s Energy Earthshots™ Initiative to advance clean energy technologies within the decade. The funding will support 11 new Energy Earthshot™ Research Centers led by DOE national laboratories and 18 university research teams addressing one or more of the Energy Earthshots™, including geothermal, carbon storage, and offshore wind.
DOE Announces More than $18 Million for Clean-Energy-Related Economic Development in Low-Income, Energy-Burdened Communities
DOE has announced more than $18 million for the second round of Communities LEAP (Local Energy Action Program), a technical assistance program that facilitates community-wide economic empowerment through clean energy. This opportunity will support 24–32 low-income, energy-burdened communities that are also either disadvantaged or experiencing direct economic impacts from a shift away from fossil . The application deadline is December 14, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. ET.
GTO Initiatives: Geothermal Everywhere
Do you know what GTO is working on right now? Head to the Geothermal Everywhere page for a refresher and check out our new postcard images for FedGeo Partnerships, the Geothermal Collegiate Competition, and the Enhanced Geothermal Shot™.
FORGE R&D Annual Workshop Recording
The Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) hosted its R&D Annual Workshop in September to explore the progress made in each of the 17 R&D projects funded under their 2020 solicitation. These projects aim to enhance our understanding of the crucial factors influencing the development of enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) reservoirs and resources.
Geothermal Lithium Extraction Prize Winners Announced!
On September 19, 2023, DOE announced the winners of its first-ever American-Made Geothermal Lithium Extraction Prize. Three teams will split a total of $2 million for prototyped innovations to directly extract lithium from the hot fluid used to produce geothermal energy, or geothermal brines. Because geothermal brines often have high concentrations of critical minerals, GTO launched the Geothermal Lithium Extraction Prize to help cost-effectively advance and scale direct lithium extraction technologies and techniques.
NREL Enhances REopt Web Tool with Hybrid Geothermal Heat Exchange Technology
An exciting new feature in NREL’s popular REopt web tool help facility and energy managers evaluate geothermal heat pump (GHP) projects more effectively!
This new capability allows users to integrate hybrid heat exchange technology with GHPs, aiming to provide more flexibility when evaluating clean heating and cooling technologies, improve project cost-effectiveness, and support decarbonization goals.
Read more about this innovative new feature.
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Webinar Highlights DOE Investments to Increase Domestic Lithium
The Clean Energy States Alliance hosted a webinar on October 10 highlighting DOE efforts to increase the domestic supply of battery-grade lithium. Speakers included GTO’s Alexandra Prisjatschew, who highlighted recent and on-going investments in extracting lithium from geothermal brines.
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