Google and the Department of Energy (DOE) have funded a massive project to generate geothermal power from a dormant volcano in Central Oregon. AltaRock Energy of Seattle and Davenport Newberry Holding of Stamford Connecticut are overseeing the geothermal project for clean energy. Google and DOE have already invested $43 million in the volcano power project.
Hertford Regional College (HRC) in the UK has joined forces with the Thor Data Center (THORDC) in Iceland to provide cost efficient, eco-friendly technology to schools, colleges and universities throughout the UK. The joint venture has been coined “HRC Cube” and is an innovative solution to dealing with increasing cuts in UK government funding to education. Drawing on Iceland’s combination of freezing temperatures and natural volcanic heat, THORDC has become one of the most energy-efficient data centers in the world. Powered by clean renewable hydroelectric and geothermal energy sources, the facility is claimed to offer cost savings to its customers whilst at the same time helping them lower their carbon emissions. The fact that it is situated in such a remote location also ensures a high level of security for the data.
As we know it
Volcanoes contain super heated steam and materials in the form of magma. While we all regard volcanoes as one of the biggest destructive forces of Mother Nature, a few researchers believe otherwise and see the earth’s natural heat as an opportunity to harness abundant clean energy. The steam emanating the high temperature geothermal fluids could be used for driving turbines to produce electricity. The volcanic fluids also contain minerals like gold, silver, sulfur and mercury that can be obtained from such projects. However, it would require new and advanced technology to handle extreme temperatures of volcanic fluids. Many organizations and countries have already started projects for this purpose, as you will see below.
Ethiopia isn’t a country that comes up often when discussing renewable energy, but the Ethiopian Electric Power Coroporation (EEPCO) this past week announced it’s starting construction of six wind power projects and one geothermal power plant. In total, electricity generation capacity for the renewable energy projects totals more than one gigawatt (1 GW), Ethtiopian news service NewsDire reported.
The renewable energy projects are part of EEPCO’s plans to increase national electricity generation capacity five times by 2015, from a current 2000 megawatts (MW) to about 10,000 MW. Increasing electricity generation, in turn, is key to the government’s broader economic development plans.
One of the main costs when harvesting geothermal energy is the digging itself. Just like oil wells, geothermal wells have to be several kilometers deep, because temperature rises along by 50 degrees Celsius with every kilometer. This is where abandoned oil wells could help generate clean electricity.
A team of researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Guangzho, led by Xianbiao Bu, have devised a method to get the heat specific to the depths of old oil and gas wells and transform it into electricity.
A new study shows that the United States has a geothermal power capacity that is ten times greater than the amount of energy produced by our current working coal-fired power plants. The study was funded by Google and conducted by Southern Methodist University’s Geothermal Laboratory where students and professors completed an in-depth map of the nation’s geothermal resources and found they aren’t just relegated to the areas in the west known for tectonic activity. The report revealed that even under the state of West Virginia, there is enough geothermal energy to immediately replace all of their coal-fired power plants.
By sifting through oil and natural gas drilling data, a Google-funded study found that geothermal power in the U.S. could produce ten times the capacity of coal plants today.
The Geothermal Laboratory at Southern Methodist University yesterday revised estimates for the country’s potential to use underground heat to make electricity. Drawing on geological data from some 35,000 sites as deep as 31,000 feet, the study concludes that geothermal could supply a large portion of U.S. electricity needs in the future.
Escalating investment in geothermal power could result in a 134% increase in global geothermal capacity between 2010 and 2020, from 10.7 gigawatts (GW) to 25.1 GW, under a high-growth forecast scenario, according to a report by Pike Research. Under a more conservative business-as-usual forecast scenario, Pike estimates that geothermal power capacity could increase 34% to 14.3 GW by 2020.
The current installed capacity of 10.7 GW is spread across 26 countries with a combined output of approximately 67 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity. Currently, the United States is the global geothermal leader with 3.1 GW of installed capacity, and seven countries represent 88% of the world market. While conventional geothermal resources account for nearly all online capacity today, enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) and co-produced wells both offer opportunities for expansion outside of rift zones or volcanically active regions throughout the world, according to the study.
Nevada, already the second largest producer of geothermal-generated electricity in the U.S., is set to increase its power production by 25 percent.
The state is getting three new geothermal plants thanks to a $350 million 20-year loan guarantee from the Department of Energy to geothermal company Ormat Technologies.
The Ormat Geothermal Project will consist of three separate geothermal power-generation facilities–one each in Jersey Valley in Pershing County, Tuscarora in Lander County, and McGinness Hills in Elko County.
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