Energy Department Addresses Largest Gathering of Geothermal Energy Stakeholders

October 4, 2012

U.S. Department of Energy investments are tapping a vast resource of clean, baseload energy from the earth's heat, according to Douglas Hollett, Program Manager for the Department's Geothermal Technologies Office. Hollett addressed over 1,000 this week at the annual conference of the Geothermal Resources Council (GRC) in Reno, Nevada—the industry's largest annual gathering of geothermal energy stakeholders in the nation. In his keynote address, Hollett discussed public-private successes in identifying and validating geothermal resources in the western United States as well as the Department's work in research and development aimed at reducing deployment costs.  

The Energy Department supports research by the national laboratories and academia as well as projects that are scaling up to commercial readiness, including conventional hydrothermal technology and Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) - which significantly expands conventional hydrothermal resources by accessing deeper, hotter, tighter rock formations.  

To encourage ongoing research in the field, Hollett recognized James Faulds of the University of Nevada, Reno, whose landmark research in characterizing structural controls of EGS and conventional geothermal reservoirs won him top marks across the board in the program's annual peer review. 

To see a copy of Doug Hollett's GRC presentation, click here.