Energy Department Announces Up to $31 Million for Initial Phases of Enhanced Geothermal Systems Field Observatory | Department of Energy

As part of the Administration’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, the Energy Department today announced up to $31 million to establish the initial phases of the Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE), a field laboratory dedicated to cutting-edge research on enhanced geothermal systems (EGS).  EGS are engineered reservoirs, created beneath the surface of the Earth, where there is hot rock but limited pathways through which fluid can flow. During EGS development, underground fluid pathways are safely created and their size and connectivity increased. These enhanced pathways allow fluid to circulate throughout the hot rock and carry heat to the surface to generate electricity.  In the long term, EGS may enable domestic access to a geographically diverse baseload, and carbon-free energy resource on the order of 100 gigawatts, or enough to power about 100 million homes.



Energy Department Announces Up to $31 Million for Initial Phases of Enhanced Geothermal Systems Field Observatory | Department of Energy