Posts Tagged Geothermal Power

Alaska Champions Geothermal Power, Plans Leasing Rights Public Offering

Posted by Leigh Kim in Geothermal Power on February 12, 2013

In Alaska’s Lower Cook Inlet, home of the active Augustine Volcano, the Division of Oil and Gas plans to offer the public the chance to bid for leasing rights on the entirety of Augustine Island, its tidelands, and surrounding waters. This amounts to close to 66,000 acres of state-owned land. On May 8, the lease [...]

Only 2% of US Geothermal Energy Needed to Supply 2500x Power Demand

Posted by Janina Lazo in Geothermal Power on December 4, 2012

Unlike solar and wind powers, geothermal power is cost-effective and a reliable source, 24/7 whole year round at a consistent and predictable rate. What’s more, according to the estimates of MIT, only 2% of the available heat energy at three to ten kilometers below the grounds of US would suffice to supply 2,500 times of [...]

Pacific Northwest’s Klamath Basin a Possible Site for Geothermal Energy Plant

Posted by Leigh Kim in Geothermal Power on November 28, 2012

There are currently three high-volume, low-heat geothermal energy plans in the world. These are located in Japan, Germany, and Iceland. By the end of 2013, if all goes according to plan, there may be a fourth plant, located in the Klamath Basin which spans parts of California and Oregon. In mid-November, two potential plant locations [...]

Geothermal Power a Possible Solution for Japan’s Energy Crisis

Posted by Leigh Kim in Geothermal Power on November 7, 2012

While unquestionably tragic, the meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in March 2011 has Japan reconsidering previously feared forms of renewable energy. Long-neglected geothermal energy is now being considered thanks to the country’s massive energy shortage. Even onsen (hot spring) resorts, major Japanese tourist attractions, once vehemently against the use of geothermal power, are [...]

Development of Philippines Geothermal Energy, Helped by NZ Scientists

Posted by Janina Lazo in Geothermal Power on October 25, 2012

Among the renewable energy industries in the Philippines, geothermal energy is the one able to keep on expanding. What’s more, it ranks second among other providers of geothermal power in the world. Along with the sector’s development is the continuing support of New Zealand’s Institute of Geothermal and Nuclear Sciences (GNS Science), which evaluates current [...]

Newberry Volcano in Oregon to Become Geothermal Power Source

Posted by Mila Luleva in Geothermal Power on October 16, 2012

Nearly one million people could benefit from a new project in Oregon, where deep waters would be turned into steam by deep geothermal activity of dormant volcanoes and the turbines will be powered without producing greenhouse gases. Altarock, the company in charge of drilling, managed to get approval for the project by the U.S. Bureau [...]

Lithium Extracted From Geothermal Power Plants to Make Cheaper Batteries

Posted by Janina Lazo in Energy Storage on October 2, 2012

Simbol Materials of Pleasanton, California has proposed a new method of acquiring lithium for batteries by extracting the element from post-production brine solutions of geothermal power plants. Lithium is an expensive key component of batteries, hybrid vehicles, and electric vehicles; and according to Jonathan lee, an analyst at Byron Capital Markets in Toronto, its price [...]

MIT Scientists Scavenging the Power of Volcanoes… Safely, They Say

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Geothermal Power on August 13, 2012

An MIT report submitted to the DOE forwards the idea of scavenging the power of volcanoes for electricity, safely. In short, they want to inject water inside a dormant volcano in Oregon at pressures that could trigger earthquakes. However, MIT claims that the new technologies they use will not generate any crust movement. The MIT [...]

Could Fracking for Methane Have Caused the Recent Italy Earthquakes?

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Geothermal Power on June 4, 2012

You probably heard about Italy’s recent earthquakes and their aftermath. While it’s highly possible that the event had natural causes, there is also the possibility that methane extraction facilities nearby the epicenter have something to do with it. They employ a method called “hydraulic fracking” to crack the rocks beneath the soil by means of [...]

How Old Oil Wells Could Become Geothermal Energy Sources

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Geothermal Power on November 24, 2011

One of the main costs when harvesting geothermal energy is the digging itself. Just like oil wells, geothermal wells have to be several kilometers deep, because temperature rises along by 50 degrees Celsius with every kilometer. This is where abandoned oil wells could help generate clean electricity. A team of researchers from the Chinese Academy [...]

Siemens Designs New 60 MW Steam Turbine for Geothermal Applications

Posted by Mike Sandru in Geothermal Power on November 4, 2011

Siemens Energy has recently developed a new 60 MW steam turbine for geothermal power plants at the GEA Geothermal Energy Expo in San Diego. Designed for geothermal applications, the new steam turbine combines the casing and turbine-generator package with the steam path technologies developed, tested and applied by TurboCare, the steam turbine service provider. The [...]

U.S. to Become World's Main Geothermal Energy Producer by 2020, Research Says

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Geothermal Power on October 3, 2011

The United States is about to become the world’s first geothermal energy producer. New statistics from Pike Research says that the goal will be reachable within the next 10 years or less. Pike Research says that the total geothermal output in the U.S. will reach 4.2 GW, which is about 36 percent more than the [...]

Conventional Geothermal in Japan Could Replace All Existing Nuclear Power Plants

Posted by Mike Sandru in Geothermal Power on September 26, 2011

According to some reports, only 16% of Japan’s energy is generated domestically, but being located on the ring of fire, Japan is considered the third country in the world with the most geologically active terrain. Facing threats such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions, Japan is the perfect location for geothermal energy development. Japan’s Geothermal [...]

Berkeley Project Stores CO2 Underground and Harvests Geothermal Energy

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Geothermal Power on August 9, 2011

A new project aimed at sequestering CO2 and at the same time extracting energy from geothermal resources is being developed by Berkeley Lab researchers. Their plan is to build a CO2-enabled geothermal system in Cranfield, Mississippi a year from now. “This is the first project intended to convert geothermally heated CO2 into useful electricity,” says [...]

Earthquake-Free Geothermal Drilling Technology Proposed by GTherm

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Geothermal Power on May 17, 2011

Earthquakes are a serious drawback and side effect of geothermal drilling and that could be damaging to the industry, especially after Japan’s nuclear experience. GTherm, a Connecticut-based company founded in 2008, thinks they can overcome the issue through their proprietary geothermal extraction process that doesn’t involve fracturing rock, which is apparently causing the quakes.