San Juan, Argentina to embark on geothermal potential mapping project
Rio San Juan, Argentina (source: littletroll, CC BY-SA 3.0 
Carlo Cariaga
6 Jun 2026
The Province of San Juan in Argentina has started an initiative to create a detailed geothermal potential map to evaluate possible power and heat applications.
State-owned energy company Energía Provincial Sociedad del Estado (EPSE) and the Faculty of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences of the Universidad Nacional de San Juan have signed an agreement to collaborate on developing the first geothermal resource map of the Province of San Juan in Argentina.
As part of the research, specialized equipment will be installed to measure subsurface temperatures and other geological parameters across the province. Data from these equipment will be used to generation a map for low, medium, and high-enthalpy geothermal resources. This can then be the basis for evaluating the various geothermal applications possible.
The project is expected to last two years and will generate strategic information for future geothermal projects in electricity generation, heating, air conditioning, and industrial applications.
As EPSE President Lucas Estrada pointed out, similar studies have been done on solar and wind resources which have laid the groundwork for San Juan’s energy growth. With geothermal now in focus, the province’s renewable energy map will soon be completed.
An important aspect of this project is the collaboration between the government, the local energy company, and the scientific community. The initiative will be led by researchers, geologists, geophysicists, and hydrogeologists from the National University of San Juan, thus strengthening the technical foundations of its findings.
There has been long-standing interest in exploring the geothermal potential of regions in Argentina bordering Chile, following the trend of the Andes Mountains. Aside from San Juan, the provinces of Neuquen and Catamarca have taken more advanced steps in geothermal exploration including the drilling of exploration wells in Copahue and geophysical measurements in Cerro Blanco.
