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Geothermal important element of EU reaching 20% RES target (EGEC)

Geothermal important element of EU reaching 20% RES target (EGEC) EU flags, Brussels/ Belgium (source: flickr/ Ingvar_Sverrisson, creative commons)
Alexander Richter 14 Sep 2010

The European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC) states that geothermal energy will allow achieving fully and over reaching the European Union's RES targets of 20% by 2020.

In a statement by the European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC), the association highlights the fact that geothermal energy “will allow achieving fully and over reaching the European Union’s RES targets of 20% by 2020”.

The statement reads: “Our association, representing the European geothermal industry, is confident to see the EU RES objectives over-passed thanks to a strong development of geothermal electricity and heating & cooling in all EU Member States.

At the Annual General Meeting of EGEC today, re-elected EGEC President Burkhard Sanner reminded in the EGEC Ferrara declaration of 1999 and stated: “our task remains to make sure, that every European will learn what the words “Geothermal Energy” mean”.

EU countries have delivered until now only 19 of the National Renewable Energy Action Plans (NREAPs) due for 30th of June 2010. More are expected in the following weeks.
Following the forecast documents presented in January 2010, the detailed NREAPs presented until now show the overall 20% target will be reached, although some national measures proposed seem to be not consistent enough.

Indeed, many NREAPS base their actions only on Wind, Solar and Biomass. The geothermal contribution is forgotten or, if existing, underestimated:

In some countries, where geothermal installations (for direct uses, or geothermal heat pumps) are already existing, they are not counted in the NREAPs.

Although there are geothermal power plants under construction (ca. 200 MWe) in several Member States, no targets are fixed for 2020.
The availability of geothermal plants is underestimated substantially, and in some Member states the scenario is below business-as-usual extrapolation.

The geothermal technology has many advantages:

  • it produces electricity, heating and cooling. Cascade uses are also possible to improve the economic performance
  • the geothermal resource is present in all EU countries – the Earth !
  • the resource is available all day and night, throughout the year: a renewable base load to the grid, operating up to 100% of time, without storage.

But, what could seem an advantage is in fact a major barrier: the lack of visibility. Moreover, it seems there is a lack of knowledge about the geothermal potential.

In 1997, the EC published a White Paper with RES projections for 2010. The geothermal sector is reaching the forecasts on electricity (1 GWe and 7 TWh/y), and is almost tripling the objectives for heating & cooling (13 GWth instead of 5 GWth).
This is achieved almost without specific support mechanisms, and much more might be possible if support in the same order as for other renewable energy sources would be available.

So the geothermal industry is confident to reach by 2020 a minimum of 6 GW electric power production capacity installed, producing 50 TWh per year, and a heating & cooling production of 10 Mtoe, and we are sure the 20% target will be over-reached by 2020 thanks to the geothermal contribution.

EGEC appeals to the governments of the EU member states to review the NREAPS and to make sure an adequate representation of geothermal energy in all its forms for heating, cooling and electric power is included in these plans!”

Source: Statement by EGEC provided by Philippe Dumas in Brussels