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Showing posts from May 17, 2026

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COWI and Sinotech Advance Taiwan’s Super-Hot Geothermal Potential

COWI and Sinotech Team Up on Taiwan’s Super-Hot Geothermal Potential Taiwan’s geothermal story is moving from possibility to execution, and the COWI-Sinotech collaboration is a sign that the sector is entering a more serious phase of development. The partnership is focused on unlocking super-hot geothermal resources, which could improve project economics and expand the country’s clean-energy options. Introduction Geothermal has long been one of Taiwan’s most intriguing renewable resources because the island sits on active tectonic terrain with strong heat potential. What has held the sector back is not a lack of heat, but the difficulty of converting that heat into bankable projects at scale. The new collaboration between COWI and Sinotech points to a more technical, internationally connected approach to solving that problem. Why Taiwan Matters Taiwan has ambitious decarbonization goals, and geothermal fits neatly into the need for firm, low-carbon power. Unlike solar and wind, geother...

MND Completes Landmark Deep Geothermal Drilling Project in Košice, Powering Central Europe’s Clean Heating Future

MND Pushes Central Europe Toward a Geothermal Future with Landmark Košice Project Central Europe has just witnessed a major geothermal breakthrough. Czech energy and drilling giant MND has officially completed the drilling phase of one of the largest geothermal heating projects in Central Europe, marking a decisive moment not only for Slovakia’s energy future, but also for the wider European geothermal sector. Located in the city of Košice, Slovakia’s second-largest city, the ambitious geothermal development demonstrates how deep geothermal energy is rapidly transforming from a niche renewable resource into a strategic pillar of urban energy security, district heating, and industrial decarbonization. The announcement by MND revealed that three deep geothermal boreholes were successfully drilled to depths of up to 3.6 kilometers under difficult geological conditions. Once fully operational, the geothermal system could cover as much as 55% of Košice’s heat consumption — an extraordina...

XGS, Baker Hughes, and Meta Ignite New Mexico’s 150MW Geothermal AI Power Revolution

XGS and Baker Hughes Push Geothermal Into the AI Era With Massive 150MW Meta-Linked Project in New Mexico The geothermal industry has officially entered a new phase — one where artificial intelligence, hyperscale data centers, and next-generation geothermal technologies are beginning to converge into a single industrial ecosystem. In one of the most significant geothermal-energy announcements of 2026, XGS Energy has partnered with Baker Hughes to accelerate development of a massive 150MW geothermal power project in New Mexico tied to the growing energy demands of Meta data center operations. The project is not merely another renewable energy development. It represents a major industrial test of whether advanced geothermal systems can reliably power the exploding AI infrastructure economy that is rapidly transforming electricity demand across the United States and the world. According to reports, the geothermal facility will provide electricity into the grid operated by Public S...

Eavor Geretsried Geothermal Breakthrough: Inside the Closed-Loop Energy Revolution, Drilling Challenges, and Path to Scalable Clean Power

The Geothermal “Holy Grail” Just Got a Reality Check: Inside Eavor’s Geretsried Breakthrough By: Robert Buluma   May 22, 2026 It’s not every day a deep-tech energy company publishes a detailed technical report that openly documents what went wrong on its flagship project—and still comes out looking stronger. That’s exactly what Eavor Technologies did with its Geretsried geothermal project in Bavaria, Germany. The result is unusually transparent: part technical post-mortem, part validation of a technology many have doubted for years. And the core message is simple. They built it. It works. But it wasn’t smooth. The short version Eavor is trying to solve one of geothermal energy’s hardest problems: how to produce reliable heat and power anywhere, not just in rare volcanic hotspots. Their claim has always been bold: a closed-loop geothermal system that is scalable, dispatchable, low-carbon, and independent of natural reservoirs. Critics have long argued it wouldn’t survive...

The Retrofit Revolution: How GreenFire Energy Is Turning Abandoned Oil & Geothermal Wells Into Continuous Clean Power Without New Drilling

The Retrofit Revolution: How GreenFire Energy Is Unlocking Geothermal Power Without Drilling a Single New Well By: Robert Buluma   While much of the geothermal energy sector has been focused on breakthrough drilling techniques—deeper wells, hotter reservoirs, and complex engineered systems—a quieter revolution has been unfolding in the background. Instead of chasing entirely new subsurface frontiers, one company has chosen a radically simpler question: What if the answer was already in the ground? GreenFire Energy is advancing a retrofit-first geothermal strategy that targets one of the most overlooked opportunities in the global energy transition: existing wells that are underperforming, depleted, or completely abandoned. Rather than drilling new holes into the Earth, the company is reusing the infrastructure that already exists—turning stranded assets into continuous sources of clean, baseload electricity. This approach is not just technically elegant. It may also be one of ...

Colombia Clears Exploratory Phase for Ecopetrol-Led Geothermal Project, Marking a Historic Step Toward Large-Scale Clean Baseload Energy Development

Colombia clears exploratory phase for geothermal project led by Ecopetrol, in partnership with Baker Hughes and CHEC (Grupo EPM), marking a major clean energy milestone. Introduction: A Turning Point for Geothermal Energy in Colombia Colombia has officially cleared a critical milestone in its clean energy transition by approving the exploratory phase of a geothermal project led by state-owned oil giant Ecopetrol. This decision marks the country’s strongest step yet toward developing large-scale geothermal energy , a resource that has long remained underexplored despite Colombia’s rich volcanic geology. The approval is centered on the Nereidas geothermal project located in the Ruiz volcanic massif in Caldas province. The initiative is being developed by Ecopetrol in partnership with international and local energy players including Baker Hughes and CHEC (a subsidiary of Grupo EPM). The project represents Colombia’s first major attempt to harness geothermal energy at scale, signaling a ...

PhD Opportunity at Newcastle University: Subsurface Geoenergy Science and Geothermal Formation Alteration

Two fully funded PhD studentships at Newcastle University focus on uncertainty quantification in subsurface geoenergy and formation alteration during geothermal production. Deadline: 5 June 2026. The Science Beneath the Steam: Why Two PhD Studentships at Newcastle University Could Shape the Future of Geothermal Energy By Alphaxioms | Geothermal Intelligence & Energy Research Introduction: The Invisible Frontier The global energy transition is fought on many fronts — in boardrooms, on policy floors, in grid-scale engineering tenders, and in the quiet corridors of university research departments where the foundational science of tomorrow's energy systems is being built, one dissertation at a time. It is in these corridors that some of the most consequential decisions about our energy future are made, not by politicians or investors, but by researchers willing to dedicate years of their lives to questions that most of the world has not yet thought to ask. Two such questions have n...

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Quaise Energy Raises $180 Million Series B to Advance Superhot Geothermal Power Plant

Quaise Energy Raises $180 Million as Superhot Geothermal Moves Closer to Commercial Reality Quaise Energy has taken a major step toward commercializing superhot geothermal power with the final close of its Series B financing, bringing in $180 million in equity capital and lifting total funding to $280 million. The round includes a $35 million investment from Nabors Industries and a strategic framework agreement that strengthens the companies’ collaboration around drilling operations, technology integration, and commercial development. The announcement matters because it is not just another clean-energy funding headline. It is a signal that superhot geothermal is starting to attract the kind of capital, industrial partnerships, and technical confidence that are usually needed before a frontier energy technology can move from laboratory promise to real-world deployment. A Big Capital Milestone The final close of the Series B gives Quaise a stronger financial base to advance Project Obs...

DMT Munich 3D Seismic Survey Unlocks Deep Geothermal Potential

DMT Launches Major 3D Seismic Survey in Greater Munich to Unlock Geothermal Potential DMT has begun one of the most ambitious geothermal exploration efforts in Europe: a large-scale 3D seismic survey across the Greater Munich area. The campaign is designed to create a detailed image of the deep subsurface and provide the geological foundation for future geothermal development in and around Munich. This matters because geothermal energy is only as strong as the quality of the subsurface data behind it. In a project like this, better information can reduce drilling risk, improve project planning, and help utilities and municipalities make smarter long-term investment decisions. Munich is already one of Germany’s most important geothermal regions, with an active district heating network and multiple operating boreholes. The new campaign aims to build on that base by identifying new opportunities and supporting the next stage of deep geothermal expansion. Why the Munich project matters The...

The "Heat-as-a-Service" (HaaS) Business Model: Geothermal Without the CAPEX Nightmare

Heat-as-a-Service takes geothermal from a capital-intensive power project to a financeable, contract-based heat utility: instead of selling electrons, you sell stable, decarbonized heat under long-term contracts that match what industrial customers and investors actually want. Image: A thematic picture of a geothermal power plant By shifting risk and ownership away from end users and toward specialised developers and infrastructure capital, it can unlock geothermal in markets where electricity tariffs are low but demand for reliable, low-carbon process heat is strong. From kWh to “heat-as-a-service” Traditional geothermal projects earn revenue by selling electricity into a grid, often at wholesale prices that barely cover high up-front drilling and plant costs unless there is a feed-in tariff or premium.Many industrial users, however, do not need electricity; they need heat for processes like brewing, greenhouse climate control or pulp and paper production, and they currently buy that ...

How AI-Powered Digital Twins Are Transforming Geothermal Reservoir Management

Geothermal Reservoir Digital Twins: How AI Is Transforming Reservoir Management Image : Thematic image of a geothermal heat pump Artificial intelligence and digital twins are quietly rewriting the playbook for geothermal reservoir management. They turn scattered subsurface data into living, predictive models that help operators boost output, cut drilling risk, and extend the productive time. How Geothermal Digital Twins Are Making Reservoirs Smarter, Safer, and More Profitable For decades, geothermal development has been constrained by one brutal fact: you can’t see 3 km underground. You infer, you model, you hope—and sometimes you drill into a dry or underperforming reservoir. AI‑powered geothermal digital twins change that equation by continuously updating subsurface models with real‑time data, making the invisible reservoir behave like a transparent, responsive system. In practice, geothermal digital twins are dynamic software replicas of wells, reservoirs, and surface facilities th...

İpeks Jeotermal to Drill 10 Geothermal Wells for Greenhouse Heating in Afyonkarahisar

İpeks Jeotermal to Drill 10 New Geothermal Wells for Greenhouse Heating in Afyonkarahisar İpeks Jeotermal Enerji Tarım Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş. plans to drill 10 new geothermal production wells to increase the heating capacity of its greenhouse facility in Afyonkarahisar, Türkiye. The company also plans to add three reinjection wells as part of an investment valued at approximately 94.5 million Turkish lira. The project will be developed in the İsmail, Çakır and Sadıkbey village areas of Afyonkarahisar’s central district, within the company’s existing geothermal licence area, identified as IR:122 and ER:3193230. The planned expansion is expected to improve the reliability of geothermal heat supplies for the company’s greenhouse operations while supporting the more efficient and sustainable use of the region’s geothermal resources. Geothermal energy is increasingly being used in greenhouse agriculture because it can provide a stable source of heat throughout the year. Unlike solar and win...

Geothermal Salary Guide 2026 by Country: USA, Germany, UK, Canada, Netherlands and Global Pay Outlook

Geothermal Salary Guide 2026 by Country Geothermal careers in 2026 are being shaped by a stronger global push for firm, low-carbon energy, rising demand for skilled drilling and subsurface talent, and the expansion of heating, cooling, and power applications. The market is no longer just about traditional geothermal power plants ; it is also being pulled forward by data center demand , heat decarbonization , and next-generation geothermal technologies such as enhanced geothermal systems . Those trends are creating new salary pressure in countries with mature energy sectors and strong technical labor markets. The most attractive salary markets in this group are the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the Netherlands, but each country offers a different mix of base pay, taxes, benefits, and career growth. The right way to evaluate geothermal pay is to look at both nominal salary and real purchasing power, because a higher number on paper does not always mean better ta...

EGS Market Size and Investment Outlook

Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) Market Size and Investment Outlook to 2034 Enhanced Geothermal Systems are at an inflection point. For years, EGS sat in the “promising but pre‑commercial” category of clean technologies, constrained by drilling cost, subsurface risk, and limited policy attention. That picture is now changing as next‑generation geothermal developers raise larger rounds, sign serious offtake agreements, and move projects from concept to execution.   At the same time, global demand for firm, low‑carbon power is rising faster than conventional geothermal can supply. Thermal plants are retiring, grids need 24/7 clean electricity, and policymakers are discovering that weather‑dependent renewables cannot carry the entire load alone. EGS is emerging as one of the few technologies capable of delivering baseload clean power using a resource available almost everywhere: deep, hot rock. Current EGS Market Size – Small but Strategic In absolute terms, the EGS market is s...

Oil to Geothermal: How Drilling Crews Are Powering the Talent Pipeline

Geothermal’s workforce story is increasingly a story about people who used to drill for oil now drilling for heat instead.  Image : A Thematic picture of an oil and gas worker  The same crews and engineers who perfected unconventional shale, deepwater wells and complex subsurface projects are being redeployed into enhanced geothermal systems, closed loop concepts and district heating, and the speed of that transition will determine how fast the project pipeline can actually be built. Below is a revised article without hyphens or commas in the prose. I will still use periods and headings so it stays readable. Geothermal Talent And The Oil To Geothermal Workforce Transition The most important geothermal technology of the next decade might not be new hardware or software. It might be people. Thousands of oilfield workers geoscientists and engineers already know how to drill deep complex wells and keep them under control. As enhanced geothermal systems and advanced concepts move f...

Utah FORGE Extended Circulation Boosts Enhanced Geothermal Research

Utah FORGE Begins Extended Circulation Utah FORGE has launched an extended circulation test at its Milford, Utah field site, marking a major step forward in the development of enhanced geothermal systems. The new phase is designed to examine how the reservoir behaves during continuous operation and to generate the long-term performance data needed to evaluate commercial viability. For a project focused on de-risking geothermal technology, this is one of the most important milestones yet. Introduction Utah FORGE, the world’s only full-scale field laboratory dedicated to testing and improving the technologies required for enhanced geothermal systems , has entered a new extended circulation phase at its site approximately 10 miles northeast of Milford, Utah. The test is expected to run for roughly four months, with the possibility of extending to 120 days depending on operational conditions. This stage matters because geothermal development is not only about finding heat underground; it i...

Neptune Energy’s Altmark Lithium Pilot Phase II Advances Adsorption-Based DLE for European Battery Supply

Neptune Energy launches Pilot Phase II for lithium extraction in the Altmark: paving the way for European battery supply Neptune Energy has begun the second pilot phase of its Altmark Lithium Extraction Project (ALE). After a broad evaluation of  Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) technologies in pilot phase I, the company is now focusing on an adsorption process and testing various adsorbent materials together with the Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Infrastructures and Geotechnologies (IEG). The project aims to recover lithium from thermal deep groundwater in northern Saxony-Anhalt economically and with environmental safeguards , a step toward regional supply chains for battery raw materials in Europe. Project status and technical objectives A project-related resource of around 43 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) has been identified in the Altmark. The lithium is dissolved in thermal water at depths between approximately 3,000 and 4,000 metres. Neptune Energy...