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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...

Potsdam Geothermal Heating Expansion: GFZ and EWP Launch Major Deep Geothermal Project for Climate-Neutral District Heating

Close Collaboration on Geothermal Heating Supply Launched in Potsdam Potsdam is taking a major step toward a cleaner and more resilient heating future. Energie und Wasser Potsdam GmbH (EWP) and the GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences have signed a project agreement that launches a four-year cooperation program to develop additional geothermal sites in the Brandenburg capital. The partnership is designed to systematically unlock the city’s hydrothermal geothermal potential and integrate it into the municipal heating network over the long term. This collaboration matters because the heat transition is no longer a theoretical goal. It is becoming a practical infrastructure challenge for cities across Germany. As older energy systems approach the end of their technical life, municipalities need solutions that are local, dependable, and affordable. Deep geothermal energy offers exactly that kind of pathway, and Potsdam is now positioning itself as one of the cities prepared to make it work...

Geothermal Energy in the Netherlands: Market Growth, Major Projects, and Future Power Potential

Geothermal Energy in the Netherlands: A Deep Research Brief Executive Summary The Netherlands has become one of Europe’s most advanced geothermal heat markets, moving from early pilot projects into commercial scale-up. In 2024, 23 operational installations produced 7.49 PJ of geothermal energy, and broader sector reporting indicates more than 30 operational installations are now active across the country . The market is led by direct heat for greenhouse horticulture, district heating, and selected industrial uses, while electricity generation remains a longer-term prospect because the country’s most accessible geothermal resources are generally better suited to heat than power . The Dutch case matters because it shows how geothermal grows when geology, demand, data, and policy align. National planning has long set ambitious expansion goals, including a pathway from roughly 3.5 PJ in 2018 toward 50 PJ by 2030 and more than 200 PJ by 2050 . More recent analysis is more cautious about the...

Green Therma Geothermal: Fifth-Generation Closed-Loop Technology for Europe’s Clean Heat Future

Green Therma and the Future of Geothermal Scale in Europe By: Robert Buluma Geothermal energy has long been one of the most intriguing renewable resources in the global clean energy mix. It is steady, local, and available around the clock, unlike solar and wind, which depend on weather and daylight. Yet despite these advantages, geothermal has often remained a niche part of the energy landscape. The reason is not a lack of potential, but a combination of technical complexity, high upfront drilling costs, site-specific geology, and the challenge of scaling projects in a repeatable way. That is why companies promising a new generation of geothermal systems tend to attract attention. Green Therma is one of those companies. Its message is bold: geothermal technology for scale, potentially up to 25,000 wells in Europe. That is a major claim, and it deserves careful attention. If such a model works, it could change how Europe thinks about district heating, industrial heat, and energy securi...

Berlin's €1 Billion Geothermal Financing Deal: BEW Secures 20-Year KfW Syndicated Loan for District Heating Transition

Berlin’s Heating Transition Secures a Decade‑Defining Loan By: Robert Buluma In late April 2026, a quiet but decisive milestone was reached in Berlin’s energy landscape. Behind the scenes of the city’s vast district heating network—the largest in Western Europe—a consortium of nine banks finalised a syndicated loan of roughly one billion euros. The transaction, structured with a twenty‑year maturity and backed by a creative blend of public and private financing, effectively unlocks the financial foundation for Berlin’s most ambitious decarbonisation projects to date. This is not simply another infrastructure loan. It is a testament to how a city‑owned utility, a supportive state government, and a broad coalition of financial institutions can align around a common goal: transforming a fossil‑fuel‑dependent heating system into a climate‑neutral powerhouse by 2045. The deal also signals a new benchmark for energy infrastructure financing in Germany, potentially reshaping how similar proje...

Ruhr Region Germany: 1,640 km² Geothermal Exploration Permit Targets District Heating

Ruhr’s Geothermal Opening By:  Robert Buluma Germany’s largest geothermal exploration permit has been granted to a consortium planning to investigate the Ruhr region from Oberhausen to Hamm, and the significance goes far beyond a routine licensing milestone. The permit covers 1,640 square kilometers, making it the biggest geothermal exploration field in Germany to date, and it positions the Ruhr as a serious test case for urban geothermal heat at scale . This is a story about more than geology. It is about how a heavily industrialized region, with dense heat demand and established district-heating infrastructure, may be able to turn a deep subsurface resource into a practical climate strategy. If the exploration work succeeds, the project could reshape how Germany approaches low-carbon heating in cities and industrial corridors . 1 . The opening move The permit granted by the Arnsberg District Government opens the door for an extensive exploration phase under the banner “Erdwärme M...

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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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...