US Senate Takes Steps to Restore DOE Geothermal Research Program

2007 Geothermal Funds Restored in Senate Appropriations Bill, $50 Million Program Included in 2008 Budget

"Today, the Senate began consideration of its version of the FY 2007 Supplemental Appropriations bill, S.965 (S. Rept 110-37). This legislation provides the funding requested by the White House to continue the Iraq War and a variety of other government programs. The Senate Appropriations Committee also included $22.7 million to fund the DOE Geothermal Program this year in the bill. (S. 965, Title III, section 3201.) Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND), Chairman of the Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, led the effort to restore FY 2007 funding.

Also, on Friday March 23, the Senate approved its FY 2008 budget resolution, and included in the final bill an amendment, proposed by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), that makes room in the FY 2008 energy budget for geothermal, ocean energy and small scale hydro-electric research at the Department of Energy. The amendment provides $50 million for geothermal research and development.

On Thursday evening, Senator Lisa Murkowski told the Senate she was offering this amendment because “..the budget shortchanges three areas of great energy potential: geothermal, ocean energy and small hydro electric development.” Senator Murkowski continued, “..by this amendment I am making a clear statement that this senator wants to see money not just restored, but increased for geothermal energy research and development, and provided for research and development of all forms of ocean energy – current, tidal and wave projects -- and also for small hydroelectric developments, those that do not involving the damming of major river systems, but instead use water from lake taps, creeks or from run-of-river projects to generate power.”

The amendment was supported by Senator Reid and others, and was adopted on voice vote as part of a package of amendments to the final bill. The amendment would reverse Administration initiatives to achieve “major savings” in the federal budget by closing these two renewable research programs. The Administration proposed termination of all hydropower research in its FY 2006 budget, and termination of all geothermal research in its FY 2007 and FY 2008 budgets."

The New Math of Alternative Energy

Geothermal Holds More Potential at Less Impact to Society

Now the equation is showing significant signs of change. Costs are falling for some alternative-energy sources, driven by new technology and renewed development interest. The math looks even more favorable if you consider the environmental cost of fossil fuels -- which most purely economic calculations don't.

Geothermal energy -- tapping heat deep in the Earth to generate power -- may have more potential, at less impact to society, than any of the other alternative resources. A new study on geothermal energy, produced by an interdisciplinary team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, found that geothermal energy could produce 10% of the nation's electricity by 2050 at prices that would be competitive with fossil fuels.

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National Renewable Portfolio Standards Bill Introduced

New legislation that would require many U.S. utilities to generate 20 percent of their electricity from renewable energy resources by 2020 was introduced Thursday by Congressman Tom Udall of New Mexico. "

A renewable portfolio standard should be passed this Congress," said Alan Nogee, Union of Concerned Scientist Clean Energy Program Director. "The bill gives the American people what they asked for in the election -- a smart, cost-effective strategy to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and get America on a track toward energy independence. And because power plants are a primary source of heat-trapping emissions, this bill can be an important part of solving global warming."
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Renewable geothermal energy holds promise, but it gets little attention

By Robert Gehrke
The Salt Lake Tribune

Geologists believe Utah sits on one of the prime reservoirs of geothermal energy in the United States, an energy resource that is clean, renewable, reliable and, to date, almost entirely untapped.

And, in a time when President Bush has called in his State of the Union address for an aggressive expansion of renewable energy, geothermal enjoys little support from the administration.

Last week, as other renewable energy sources were the focus of major new initiatives, Bush once again proposed eliminating the Energy Department's office focused on expanding geothermal energy. more...

Abundant Power from Universal Geothermal Energy

The answer to the world's energy needs may have been under our feet all this time, according to Jefferson Tester, professor of chemical engineering at the MIT Laboratory for Energy and the Environment. Tester says heat generated deep within the earth by the decay of naturally occurring isotopes has the potential to supply a tremendous amount of power -- thousands of times more than we now consume each year.
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Energy Clients Getting Green

"RENEWABLE ENERGY makes up only a small fraction of U.S. energy use — 6 percent, according to the most recent figures from the Energy Information Administration — but the buzz over renewables is huge, and the number of renewable deals being done is increasing rapidly..."
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Geothermal Advocates Go to Washington

The following presentations were given at the March 1, 2007 briefing on geothermal energy to members of the U.S. Congress. This second annual briefing was hosted by Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and featured the following presenters:

(1) Bernie Karl, Chena Hot Springs Resort, Alaska

(2) Karl Gawell, Geothermal Energy Association (GEA)

(3) Jefferson Tester, Professor, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

(4) Roy Mink, U.S. Geothermal Inc.*

(5) Paul Thomsen, Ormat Technologies Inc.

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A Step Toward Inexpensive Geothermal Energy

Advocates call it one of the cleanest, sustainable energy resources available. However, steep construction, equipment and drilling costs have prevented more widespread development of geothermal technology. An Ohio University hydrothermal systems expert is working to change that... read article

Analysis: Cost of Clean vs. Conventional Energy

By Scott Sklar—Let us take a hypothetical 300 MW combined renewable energy plant composed equally of geothermal or microhydro/tidal, photovoltaics or concentrated solar power, and wind—all with 20-year warranted output—able to produce electricity 24 hours, 7 days per week. Now I probably can provide a combined cost including operations and maintenance over these 20 years. But now comes the challenge. Can I find a conventional technology which can provide energy, without any fuel escalation, with zero emissions, and no waste to compete against this plant? read article

Growth Forecast in Renewable Energy Markets

"Global clean-energy markets are poised to quadruple in the next decade, growing from $55.4 billion in revenues in 2006 to more than $226.5 billion by 2016 for four benchmark technologies, according to the sixth annual Clean Energy Trends report."read full report

MIT-led panel backs 'heat mining' as key U.S. energy source

A comprehensive new MIT-led study of the potential for geothermal energy within the United States has found that mining the huge amounts of heat that reside as stored thermal energy in the Earth's hard rock crust could supply a substantial portion of the electricity the United States will need in the future, probably at competitive prices and with minimal environmental impact. more...