GEOTHERMAL COMING BACK

Geothermal power industry lost steam but may be poised for comeback

Julie Cart, October 19, 2014 (LA Times)

“…[Geothermal] industry leaders say the energy harnessed from the Earth is poised for a renaissance, powered by new technology that will boost production, pare costs and expand its reach…Some impetus for the change has come from within. The geothermal industry's not-so-politically-savvy leaders, mostly geologists and mechanical engineers, had since the 1980s been eclipsed by hard-charging solar and wind energy developers who play the lobbying game, and play it well…Geothermal's leaders watched and learned. Their challenge now, they say, is regaining some of the lost political and financial ground…Although geothermal companies are unlikely to be the energy giants that solar and wind producers have become, new technology could enable the industry to grow far beyond the Western states…

“…[G]eothermal energy accounts for barely 0.4% of the nation's available energy…[T he U.S. Energy Department’s] 2014 research budget for geothermal is $45 million, compared with $257 million for solar…The U.S. Bureau of Land Management estimates the average wind or solar project is greenlighted in 1 1/2 years. Approval for a geothermal project can take as long as seven years…[But] researchers are investigating ways to overcome technological barriers…Geothermal will never be a major energy source, [a 2008 Massachusetts Institute of Technology] report concluded, but if fully tapped, it could provide as much as 10% of the nation's power…” click here for more

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