Full Title: Geothermal: Policies to Help America Lead
Author(s): Robert Fourqurean and Sagatom Saha
Publisher(s): Third Way
Publication Date: April 18, 2023
Full Text: Download Resource
Description (excerpt):
The US should not miss out on the opportunity to build a globally competitive geothermal industry. Today, the US has a lead in the technology space, representing 25% of the market with the ability to capitalize on its early advantage. However, other countries are prioritizing geothermal and could overtake US investments.
The geothermal market opportunity is significant: The global market addressable by US firms is conservatively estimated to be $1.5 trillion through mid-century creating 100,000 jobs. The actual size of the market could be much larger if critical innovations, such as enhanced geothermal systems (EGS), deep drilling, and well materials innovations, take off.
The Inflation Reduction Act provides substantial incentives for geothermal domestically but more can be done, from de-risking financing for early-stage projects to enhancing market signals to accelerate deployment of technologies that are already at commercial scale. Additionally, directing US commercial diplomacy towards emerging geothermal technologies can translate domestic build-out into a globally competitive industry, with the most promising initial markets in Southeast Asia, Sub Saharan Africa, and Latin America.