Overview
- The U.S. Department of Energy selected 21 projects for up to $99 million to support field‑scale tests and exploration work, a selection the agency announced Monday, Sept. 21.
- Five of the projects were chosen to run enhanced geothermal system field tests that will drill, stimulate, and operate engineered reservoirs to prove technology at depth.
- Sixteen projects will fund exploration drilling to map and confirm conventional and next‑generation geothermal resources, with recipients including Fervo Energy, Quaise Energy, Zanskar Geothermal, XGS Energy, and Invenergy.
- All data generated by the tests and drilling will be posted in DOE’s Geothermal Data Repository to give researchers and developers shared subsurface information for future site selection and modeling.
- Selections are conditional and enter formal award negotiations that DOE may cancel, and the funding push reflects growing investor interest and the use of oil‑and‑gas drilling methods to speed geothermal commercialization and local job creation.