Geothermal boost for Amsterdam: OMV and Cocreators selected to lead regional heat projects The Aardwarmte Regio Amsterdam consortium — made up of Vattenfall, the Municipality of Amsterdam and Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN) — has selected OMV, in collaboration with Cocreators, as the operator to advance geothermal projects for collective heat networks across the Amsterdam region. The decision, reached after a European tender process, brings an experienced international energy company and a project-management specialist together with local partners to test feasibility, design potential geothermy doublets and, where viable, develop and implement geothermal heat production for district heating systems. Why this matters Decarbonising heating is one of the most urgent and technically complex elements of the energy transition in dense European cities. In the Netherlands, where gas has historically supplied much of the built environment, scaling low-carbon alternatives for space heating and ho...
Újbuda Gets Approval to Explore Its Geothermal Energy Potential Budapest’s Újbuda district has received approval to examine whether geothermal energy can contribute to its future heating and energy needs. The decision places one of the capital’s most densely populated districts at the centre of Hungary’s broader effort to make better use of its underground thermal resources. The approval does not mean that a geothermal power plant or district-heating system will be built immediately. Instead, it allows the district and its partners to investigate the geological conditions, technical feasibility, environmental implications and financial requirements of using heat stored beneath the city. The project could eventually support cleaner heating, reduce dependence on imported natural gas and strengthen Budapest’s energy resilience. Its success, however, will depend on careful geological research, responsible water management, transparent public consultation and a realistic financing model. Wh...