US DOE announces $74 million funding for EGS pilot projects

Funding Opportunity Announcement for EGS Pilot Demonstration (source: U.S. DOE)

The Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO) under the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has published a funding opportunity announcement (FOA) for pilot demonstration projects that aim to utilize or develop enhanced geothermal systems (EGS). The first round of letters of intent for this FOA is due on 8 March 2023.

Applications for this FOA must bed one via the EERE Exchange. The DOE has also prepared a quick guide on how to submit an application.

A total funding of USD 74 million will be made available for this initiative as part of the Biden administration’s landmark Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This legislation authorizes the DOE to support up to seven competitively selected pilot projects that demonstrate EGS in different geologic settings using a variety of development techniques and well orientations.

The pilot demonstration activities funded through this FOA will advance the Biden Administration’s goals to achieve carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035. Strategic goals for this FOA are derived from the Enhanced Geothermal Shot, the GeoVision analysis, and GTO’s Multi-Year Program Plan (MYPP).

Topic areas

A key component of this FOA is the variety of geologic formations and subsurface conditions in which these pilot demonstrations take place. To ensure that variety, the projects selected under this FOA will build on the lessons of previous GTO EGS demonstration initiatives to help accelerate EGS commercialization pathways throughout the United States under four Topic Areas.

The four Topic Areas are as follows:

• EGS Proximal – EGS demonstrations utilizing existing infrastructure proximal to existing geothermal/hydrothermal development with immediate potential for electrical power production.
• EGS Green Field – Sites with no existing geothermal development and potential for sedimentary, igneous and/or mixed metamorphic rock EGS with near-term electrical power production potential.
• Super-Hot / Critical EGS – Super-hot/Supercritical EGS  (>375°C) demonstrations located at well-characterized sites with existing well(s) in place and near-term electrical power production potential.
• Eastern U.S. EGS – EGS stimulation demonstration located at a well-characterized eastern U.S. site, with existing well(s) in place and near-term electrical power and heat production potential.

Although the first round of applications will end on 8 March 2023, the FOA may remain open for up to 48 months with review cycles done every eight months.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy