Where Our Energy Comes From: Geothermal
Posted on June 15, 2021 by Will Gehrke
Tags, Energy
Where does our energy come from? Here at CUB, much of our work is predicated on the belief that shedding light on this question for utility customers is good for their interests. In this blog, CUB explains geothermal electricity generation and its relationship to Oregon’s utility customers.
The Neal Springs power plant, located in Malheur County, is the only geothermal power plant in the state of Oregon. The 22-megawatt facility produces enough energy to power approximately 17,000 homes for Idaho Power, which has customers in eastern Oregon and Idaho. Under the Neal Springs contract, customers of Idaho Power will receive power from Neal Springs until 2036.
Geothermal power plants use heat energy from the earth to heat underground water. The heated water is turned into steam, which is used to move a turbine to generate electricity. Under Oregon law, geothermal power plants like Neal Springs are eligible power sources for the renewable portfolio standard and can be an alternative to other renewable resources such as wind, solar, and hydroelectric power. According to the US Department of Energy, the Neal Springs plant avoids 86,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions on an annual basis.
At first glance, geothermal energy appears to be a great renewable energy resource. Geothermal power plants are nearly carbon free, free from emissions or nuclear waste, and do not use a lot of land. The natural heat of the earth provides reliable power. Unlike wind and solar, geothermal production can be controlled to meet load. With all these advantages, why isn’t there more geothermal power?
One big reason is that geothermal power plants have significant development risk. Like gas and oil exploration and production, geothermal requires exploratory and geologic testing to confirm the suitable conditions for geothermal energy production. Geothermal plants are tailored to the geologic conditions at each site. These processes are expensive and yet their completion does not guarantee that a given site will yield the amount of energy over time projected by its developers. Under Oregon law, utility customers cannot be charged for a power plant that is not being used to serve them. If a utility finances a geothermal plant, and it does not produce, utility shareholders will not be able to recover the costs associated with the plant. While these conditions constitute good public policy for Oregon’s utility customers, the law has chilled investment in geothermal in the state.
Even if a power plant developer can secure financing for a geothermal plant, suitable sites around the world are severely limited. Geothermal plants require access to heated underground water reservoirs and access to transmission. In general, within the United States, only the West has the geological sites suitable for geothermal power production. Oregon is among seven states that host geothermal plants, all of which are west of the Rocky Mountains.
PacifiCorp (parent company of Pacific Power) owns a geothermal resource in Utah, while Idaho Power receives the output from Neal Springs in Oregon. In Oregon, potential geothermal power plants sites are largely limited to the eastern half of the state. Aside from the scarcity of geothermal locations, geothermal power plants tend to be small compared to other utility scale power plants. In short, while it is a valuable part of Oregon’s energy resource mix, geothermal alone does not have the potential to meet all energy needs.
To keep up with CUB, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter!
08/18/21 | 0 Comments | Where Our Energy Comes From: Geothermal