US Government Announces Geothermal Technologies Investment

The US Energy Department has announced its intention to invest as much as $84 million into new ventures involving geothermal energy – that produced naturally by the earth and generally considered renewable, since it is created recurrently.

The Energy Dept.’s funding can be broken down into two areas. Up to $35 million, it said, would be directed towards between 20 and 30 scientific proposals focusing on technological development within geothermal applications, while a separate $49 million would be given to between five and ten projects concerned with household geothermal systems capable of supplying a minimum of five megawatts per annum.

A statement delivered by Steven Chu, the US Energy Secretary, detailed the move further.

“President Obama has laid out an ambitious agenda to put millions of people to work by investing in clean energy technology like geothermal energy”, Chu said.

“The administration is committed to funding important research like this to transform the way we use and produce energy and reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil.”

Renewable Energy Sources

Amongst a raft of environmentally-related promises made by the US President is that, by 2012, renewable sources (including geothermal energy) will be supplying one-tenth of the United States' electrical needs and, by 2025, 25 per cent. Within US government, by 2020, he wants this situation to be true for a minimum 30 per cent of the electricity used there

Geothermal energy comes from sites located at subterranean level, and the electricity that can be produced from it is associated with reduced CO2 emissions. Alternatively, unharnessed geothermal energy can be used as a means of heating homes, offices and other structures.

Geothermal Conversion Investment

More geothermal energy-to-electricity conversion takes place in the US than anywhere else on Earth, with almost 30 geothermal power plants in operation which, combined, produce 1,250 megawatts – sufficient power for over a million houses.

No such plants are presently active in the UK, although a number of smaller-scale programmes involving geothermal heating are up and running.

In terms of other environmental benefits, emissions aside, geothermal plants require less space than other types of plants, like nuclear sites.

On the flipside, however, some query just how sustainable geothermal energy is, given the possibility of some current sites losing heat over time.

Environmental News will continue to report on the implementation of various aspects of President Obama’s environment promises as further details on them emerge.