Why Use Geothermal Energy
Advantages for using Oil & Gas Fields
- Geothermal projects are grounded in practices similar to the hydrocarbon industry;
- Geothermal fluids produced from existing reservoirs by perforating zones for increased water production;
- Projects extend the balance sheet of the surface and subsurface infrastructure, i.e., wells, roads, power lines, etc.;
- Projects are less expensive than typical geothermal development by reducing exploration costs; estimated payouts possible in 3 - 5 years;
- Power plants are scaleable with moveable turbines to meet the changing needs of an oil/gas field and can be used for waste heat applications currently in the field;
- Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) are an additional commodity that can be used or sold - Geothermal Energy is GREEN POWER;
- Texas has an exemption from the oil and gas severance taxes for oil and gas produced in association with the production of geothermal energy (TEX. TAX CODE §§ 201.060 & 201.063)
Geothermal Energy Power Highlights
Geothermal energy provides more than 2700 megawatts (MW) of electric power to U.S. residents - comparable to 60 million barrels of oil per year, enough for 3.5 million homes. This is only a small fraction of the potential value of geothermal energy in the U.S.
Geothermal electricity is clean - no fossil fuels are burned. Geothermal electricity produced in the U.S. displaces the emission of 22 million tons of carbon dioxide a year!
Geothermal electricity is reliable - a geothermal plant's average system availability is 95% or higher, compared to 60-70% for coal and nuclear plants.
Geothermal electricity is cost-effective - current cost of geothermal electricity ranges from $0.05 to $0.10 per kilowatt-hour.
Geothermal projects are considered small - their footprint uses 1-8 acres per megawatt (MW) versus 5-10 acres per MW for nuclear-operations and 19 acres per MW for coal power plants.
Geothermal electricity is homegrown - reducing our need to import oil and adds jobs to the U.S. economy.