Friday, December 15, 2017

Geothermal Energy News from Around the World

Global Geothermal News - Weekly Update


A round-up of this week's geothermal energy news....... 

Click on the links below to view the whole story and other news stories on Global Geothermal News.



The Geothermal Resources Council (GRC) Geothermal Library contains over 40,000 records on all aspects of geothermal energy, including exploration, reservoir engineering, power plant design and operation, direct use, geothermal heat pumps, regulatory issues, energy policy, energy markets, news briefs, and more. Now includes all 212 Transactions papers from the 2017 GRC Annual Meeting.

Monday, December 11
New Zealand: 28 MW Expansion of Ngawha Geothermal Power Station to be Completed by 2021 - Iceland Drilling will send a specialist team and be based in Northland for one year from April 2018. Ormat has the contract to design, build and supply the power station.

Tuesday, December 12
USA: Feedback Requested on Lowering the Cost and Risk of Geothermal Drilling - Drilling costs can account for 50% or more of the total capital cost for a geothermal power project. Identifying pathways to reduce these costs is a top priority.

United Kingdom: Geothermal Energy PhD at University of Glasgow - Understanding blockages in active geothermal systems: insights from clumped isotopes (Ref IAP-17-43). Funding available for October 2018.

Philippines: IPPA Contract for 108 MW Mt Apo Geothermal Power Plant Could be Defaulted- With the default declaration, it has been noted by sources from PSALM that the government’s next move shall be to cancel its performance bond and eventual termination of their IPPA agreement.

Turkey: 18 MW Turcas Kuyucak Geothermal Power Plant in Full Commercial Operation- The first 10 MW of the 18 MW Kuyucak Geothermal Power Plant in the village of Yöre, Kuyucak district, Aydın province was in operation already. The remaining 8 MW was temporarily accepted into operation as of 7 December 2017.

Wednesday, December 13
USA, California: Latest Figures Highlight Golden State's Prominence in Geothermal Energy- California on it's own is #1 in the world for geothermal energy production, with 2,694 MW of capacity, about 19.5% of the global total.

USA: Geothermal Energy Exploration Bill Passes Out of Committee - “Idaho has an abundant supply of clean energy stored below ground, but the resource hasn’t reached its potential because of excessive regulation,” Labrador said. “My bill will clear the way for additional exploration without sacrificing environmental protections.”

Kenya: Construction of 35 MW Menengai Geothermal Power Plant to Begin in March- Quantum Power East Africa Limited (QPEA), one of the Independent Power Producers (IPP) for the Menengai Geothermal Project, will commence the construction of a 35 MW power plant on 1st March 2018.

Climate Change: Bill Gates' Clean-Energy Investment Fund Could Boost Geothermal Energy - "There is a phenomenal amount of energy stored up as heat under the Earth’s surface—many times more than we could get from all the known coal and oil reserves in the world."

Thursday, December 14
USA, Arizona: Utility to Seek 100 MW of New Renewable Energy in 2018 - The RFPs will be issued next month and will consider a number of technologies, including solar, wind, geothermal and biomass.

USA: Funding Available for Early-Stage Energy R&D - The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced up to $100 million in funding for new projects as part of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy’s (ARPA‑E) latest OPEN funding opportunity.

Friday, December 15
Canada: Geothermal Energy is an Amazing Fit in Alberta - Report - Geothermal energy is an amazing fit in Alberta, given our history of oil and gas development. Yet the only commercial geothermal projects in this province are a pair of tourist hot springs.

USA: DOE Plans to Split Office of Under Secretary for Science and Energy - Under the new plan, the current office of Under Secretary for Science and Energy will be separated into two Under Secretary positions so that there will once again be three Under Secretaries: the Under Secretary of Energy; the Under Secretary for Science; and the Under Secretary for Nuclear Security and NNSA Administrator.

USA, California: Takeover of Calpine to be Completed First Quarter of 2018 - The acquisition is expected to be completed during the first quarter of calendar year 2018, subject to satisfaction of the remaining customary closing conditions, including receipt of certain regulatory approvals.

Taiwan: Feed-in Tariff Increased for Geothermal Energy - To accelerate geothermal energy system installations, the ministry has increased the feed-in tariff to NT$6.1710 from the proposed NT$5.6447 for the first 10 years of the installations’ subsidiary period.

Global: Calendar of Geothermal Energy Events


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