Menengai’s Broken Promise: How Kenya’s Geothermal Model Lost the Steam Thematic image of the Olkaria Geothermal Field Kenya’s Menengai geothermal project was sold as a model of modern public-private partnership. The state would carry the difficult and expensive burden of geothermal exploration and drilling. Private power producers would then build, own and operate power plants. Geothermal Development Company would supply the steam; the independent power producers would convert it into electricity; Kenya Power would buy the output. On paper, the arrangement was elegant. In practice, Menengai has exposed a far more uncomfortable reality: Kenya’s public steam-supply model is not delivering the certainty it promised. Menengai Phase I was designed to produce 105 megawatts from three 35 MW plants. GDC’s own project page says the three plants were awarded to Globeleq Menengai Geothermal, Sosian Menengai Geothermal Power and OrPower Twenty Two under a build-own-operate structure. Yet the ...
Zanskar Secures $115 Million to Redefine Geothermal Discovery with AI
The geothermal sector just crossed another psychological milestone.
Zanskar, a U.S.-based geothermal developer blending hard geoscience with artificial intelligence, has raised $115 million in Series C financing, marking one of the most significant capital injections yet into AI-driven geothermal exploration. The raise propels the company into a new phase,moving decisively from discovery to grid-scale power generation across the Western United States.
This latest round pushes Zanskar’s total equity funding to $180 million, a clear signal that investors now see geothermal not as a niche renewable, but as critical baseload infrastructure for the decades ahead.
Big Capital Bets on AI-Native Geothermal
The funding round was led by Spring Lane Capital, with continued backing from Obvious Ventures, Union Square Ventures, and Lowercarbon Capital, alongside a diverse mix of energy, infrastructure, and technology-focused investors.
Why the confidence?
Because Zanskar isn’t just drilling wells,it is rewriting how geothermal resources are found.
Rather than relying solely on traditional exploration methods, the company has built an AI-native geothermal discovery platform that integrates subsurface data, field geoscience, and proprietary machine-learning models. The goal is ambitious: cut exploration risk, shorten timelines, and unlock geothermal fields previously considered invisible or uneconomic.
According to the company, the new capital will be used to:
Expand its AI-powered discovery platform
Scale up exploration and confirmation drilling
Begin construction of geothermal power plants at already-identified sites
Zanskar expects its first projects to start delivering electricity before 2030, with a multi-gigawatt pipeline already taking shape.
From Hidden Heat to Gigawatt-Scale Power
At the core of Zanskar’s strategy is the belief that geothermal scarcity is a data problem, not a resource problem.
CEO and co-founder Carl Hoiland has consistently argued that artificial intelligence can dramatically reduce discovery risk long considered the Achilles’ heel of geothermal development.
And the results are starting to speak.
Zanskar reports that it has already confirmed multiple large geothermal systems across the Western U.S., many of which were previously unknown. Even more striking, deeper drilling has revealed far higher energy potential than early models suggested, fundamentally improving project economics.
The company describes its platform as a full-stack operating system for geothermal development, spanning:
Early-stage resource identification
Field validation and drilling optimization
Development planning and long-term asset operation
This integrated approach positions Zanskar not just as an explorer, but as a long-term geothermal power owner and operator.
Why Investors Are Paying Attention Now
This funding round stands out as one of the largest venture investments ever made in AI-enabled geothermal exploration,and the timing is no accident.
Electricity demand is surging, driven by:
Data centers and AI infrastructure
Industrial electrification
Grid reliability concerns
Unlike intermittent renewables, geothermal offers firm, clean, 24/7 power,a rare combination in today’s energy landscape.
Spring Lane Capital Partner Jason Scott, who will join Zanskar’s board, emphasized geothermal’s immediacy and strategic value, describing it as one of the few technologies capable of meeting rising power demand without compromising grid stability or climate goals.
Meanwhile, Obvious Ventures’ leadership highlighted Zanskar’s execution speed and discipline,two qualities historically missing in large-scale geothermal rollouts. Having banked on the company earlier on
Proven Ground, Real Projects
Zanskar’s growing portfolio includes notable geothermal prospects such as:
Lightning Dock, New Mexico
Pumpernickel, Nevada
Across these sites, the company claims to have identified more geothermal anomalies than any other North American developer in recent decades, underscoring the impact of its AI-driven exploration model.
As Zanskar transitions from exploration to construction, it plans to build, own, and operate geothermal power plants as long-life infrastructure assets,placing it squarely in the league of next-generation clean energy utilities.
To support this expansion, the company is actively recruiting talent across engineering, project development, and finance.
A Signal Moment for the Geothermal Industry
Zanskar’s $115 million raise is more than a company milestone,it’s a sector-wide validation.
It confirms what geothermal insiders have long known:
The Earth’s heat is vast, underutilized, and finally becoming investable at scale.
As AI reshapes subsurface exploration and capital flows follow confidence, geothermal is quietly positioning itself as the bedrock of the future clean energy system.
And Zanskar is determined to be at the center of that transformation.
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