| Title | Key Elements to Growing the Global Geothermal Industry |
|---|---|
| Authors | Mike ALLEN |
| Year | 2020 |
| Conference | World Geothermal Congress |
| Keywords | Industry, growth, risk, mitigation, incentives, IPP, finance, equity, capital, promotion, associations |
| Abstract | The geothermal industry is a key but relatively small-scale contributor to the world of renewable and sustainable energy. While its importance and value remain significant, international growth continues at only a modest pace. Efforts to engage the private sector in greenfield developments, especially in the emerging economies, remain a challenge. The competition from falling costs for PV and wind is introducing hurdles but solutions continue to be found to addressing the high early stage investment for geothermal. There are a number of risk mitigation tools that have been proposed; these are considered alongside the more orthodox options of public finance for exploration and resource confirmation. The value of success with early investigations and developments are contrasted with private attempts to undertake these phases with limited access to equity funding. The importance of thorough, high quality and realistic resource investigations and assessments is considered with some case studies. In the current environment, where geothermal has to demonstrate its benefits in energy scenarios that see constant competition from apparently lower cost options, that can be more quickly installed, the industry needs strong and convincing international representation and promotion. The role of domestic and international associations is being questioned; thoughts are presented on how they could deliver more for the industry and how international collaboration, amongst a relatively small group of specialists, is of increasing importance |