News

IMPORTANT UPDATE – World Geothermal Congress 2020+1 to be held in hybrid format

IMPORTANT UPDATE – World Geothermal Congress 2020+1 to be held in hybrid format WGC2020+1 Announcement (website screenshot)
Alexander Richter 4 Feb 2021

A brand-new format has been announced for the World Geothermal Congress 2020+1 with a series of thematic virtual events, starting on 30 March 2021 and continuing into the Fall – Culminating in a final highlight event on-site in Reykjavik, Iceland from 24-27 October 2021.

Ever since the World Geothermal Congress 2020 was postponed last spring, the WGC Organising Committee in conjunction with its financial backers and stakeholders have been working hard planning a congress in May 2021.  Now the organisers have released an update announcing how the event will be taking place.

As it has become clear that May this year is not possible either, the Organising Committee has adapted WGC to the new situation we are all facing, while still guaranteeing that WGC 2020 will be an outstanding world class event, where Iceland’s knowledge and experience in harnessing geothermal will be at the forefront.

The outcome is World Geothermal Congress 2020+1, a series of monthly virtual events, where over 2,000 papers will be presented, giving the audience to interact with their respective authors and presenters. The highlight of WGC 2020+1 will be a three-day on-site/ hybrid conference in Harpa Conference Centre in Reykjavik, Iceland on 24-27 October 2021, this highlight event will be streamed on-line giving all those of our community that cannot still travel a chance to join the action.

What was planned as a geothermal week in Reykjavik in 2020 will in effect become a geothermal semester, stretching from the virtual opening on March 30 towards the end of October 2021.

The focus of the virtual events will be first and foremost to introduce and perhaps more importantly, discuss around 2,000 papers that have been written in the past years about all the important things that are happening in our industry, whether they be geothermal exploration and utilisation, geosciences, technology, environmental impact, business development and licensing and planning to name only a few topics. Registered participant will get access to all the presentations, their broadcast and related discussions.

The on-site in person event in Reykjavik will be the high point of WGC 2020+1. Turning a spotlight to all the highlights, industry leaders will convene in Harpa Conference Centre to discuss the most outstanding papers, the biggest challenges facing geothermal today and of course, how geothermal can improve its competitiveness and relevance, all the while contributing towards a sustainable and carbon neutral future of energy.

The highlight event in Reykjavik will feature a world class exhibition in the magnificent Harpa Conference Centre, short course, afternoon and evening field trips to geothermal installations and attractions around the capital, all sorts of non-technical and cultural events, opening cocktail and entertainment in and around Harpa. The highlight event in Reykjavik will focus on our industry, its leaders, and the business environment of geothermal today – While the Technical Programme will be mostly in the virtual part in the preceding months.

It is our sincere belief that with this innovative approach, registered participants will get so much more than with the initially planned conference set up. Therefore, we are calling this approach WGC 2020+1 – Delivering a world class geothermal conference for our community while at the same time highlighting the exceptional contribution Iceland has made towards geothermal development.

Bjarni Pálsson
Chairman Organising Committee

Marit Brommer
Executive Director, IGA

Alexander Richter
Managing Director, Iceland Geothermal/ Iceland Renewable Energy Cluster