U.S. DOE announces $14.5m geothermal funding opportunity

The US Department of Energy has announced the Wells of Opportunity 2021 FOA. This is a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for up to $14.5 million to support field testing of Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) technologies and techniques within existing wells.

The Wells of Opportunity 2021 FOA solicits the partnership of well owners or operators to help cost-effectively bring more geothermal power online using their existing wells. We previously reported on the 2020 Wells of Opportunity funding opportunity.

The DOE Geothermal Technologies Office’s (GTO) 2019 GeoVision study concludes that with technology improvements, especially in areas relevant to enhanced geothermal systems, geothermal power generation could increase 26-fold from today, representing 60 GWe by 2050.

The Wells of Opportunity 2021 FOA builds upon the progress of last year’s initial Wells of Opportunity FOA, released in February 2020, by focusing on two topic areas:

• Topic Area 1 – Amplify: EGS Near-Field RD&D: This field validation effort will result in new power production, making existing geothermal fields more economical to operate. The goal of Amplify is to illustrate that near-field and in-field enhanced geothermal systems that can be successfully deployed now.
• Topic Area 2 – ReAmplify: Geothermal Production from Hydrocarbon Wells: This effort seeks to establish the commercial viability of geothermal energy production from hydrocarbon wells that might provide access to otherwise untapped geothermal potential.

Full applications are due by 5:00 p.m. ET on July 26, 2021. Please view the FOA and application instructions for more information.

The full press release, as well as the links for application, can be found in the website linked below.

Source: US Department of Energy