U.S. Geothermal Industry to Expand 'Staggering' Potential on Techno Innovation

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Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The U.S. Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) sees good progress being made in the sector in 2013. In 2012, seven new geothermal projects and expansions came online, adding a total of 147.05 megawatts (MW) of capacity, which represents the second-highest annual capacity addition since the production tax credit was extended to geothermal in 2005.

The GEA also has identified 13 geothermal companies with projects in the third or fourth stage of development, and some of which are expected to come online in 2013.

Some of the project highlights in 2012 were:

• The first hybrid solar-geothermal project commissioned by Enel Green Power (Milan:EGP) (Italy) at its Stillwater geothermal power plant.
• The first co-production of geothermal power at a gold mine commissioned by Electra Therm (Reno, Nevada) at the Florida Canyon Mine in Nevada.
• The high-temperature flash steam power plant was brought online by Energy Source (El Centro, California) at the company's 49.9-MW John L Featherstone geothermal power plant in southern California.
• The first utility-scale geothermal power plant in Oregon at Neal Hot Springs by U.S. Geothermal (NYSE:HTM) (Boise, Idaho).

U.S. companies continue to maintain a strong presence in the sector worldwide. Countries like Kenya, which set a goal of bringing 5,000 MW of geothermal online by 2030, stand to benefit the establishment of the The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the GEA -- East Africa Geothermal Partnership (EAGP) program.

Technological advances include enhanced geothermal systems technology, which is the process of extracting heat from engineered reservoirs through fluid injection and rock stimulation, which is said to have "staggering" potential.

The Department of Energy (DoE) was active at the Salton Sea plant operated by Simbol Minerals (Lawrence Livermore National Labs). The demo facility is working to produce lithium, manganese and zinc from geothermal brines during the power process. The target is to produce enough lithium for 300,000 to 600,000 electric vehicle batteries and to turn the U.S. into a major lithium producer.

The DoE is partnering with the Arizona Geological Survey and other bodies to create the National Geothermal Data System, an interactive, open-source database to help facilitate the process toward large geothermal energy production, and to cut time and costs in developing new production areas. Data from more than 3 million wells will be included by the end of 2013, and the data system's open-source standards and protocols can be leveraged by software developer to create innovative apps and tools for the evolving geothermal energy industry.

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