Google search result: geothermal

Google uses its vaunted search engine to find an energy source it wants to support and comes up with this result: geothermal.

Google, through its philanthropic arm Google.org, announced US $10.25 million to fund research on energy technology called Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS), according to a report in RenewableEnergyWorld.com.

The amount includes funding for research on next-generation geothermal resource mapping, EGS information tools, and a policy agenda for geothermal energy.

Dan Reicher, Director of Climate and Energy Initiatives of Google.org, considers EGS could be the "killer app" of the energy world, saying it has the potential to deliver vast quantities of power 24/7 and available nearly anywhere on the planet.

In contrast to the usual geothermal approach of finding naturally occurring steam and hot water reservoirs as practiced here, the EGS process finds hot rocks, artificially fractures these and circulates water through the system to extract heat energy which can then be converted to electricity.

The recipients of Google's largess include:

AltaRock Energy Inc.: US $6.25 million investment to develop innovative technologies to achieve significant cost reductions and improved performance in EGS projects.

Potter Drilling Inc.: US $4 million investment in two rounds, to develop new approaches to lower the cost and expand the range of deep hard rock drilling.

Southern Methodist University Geothermal Lab: US $489,521 grant to improve understanding of the size and distribution of geothermal energy resources and to update geothermal mapping of North America.

Other countries which are looking at EGS include Australia and France.

HERE, with abundant circulating water, the systems that have been developed or characterized are water-dominated, natural geothermal systems.