06 February 2008
U.S., Partners Promote Geothermal Energy in Developing Nations
Clean power from this natural resource could lessen energy burdens
Washington -- In the global push to generate power from renewable sources rather than the planet’s dwindling reservoir of fossil fuels, a growing number of nations with access to heat from the earth -- geothermal energy -- is tapping into its potential.
Geothermal energy is a clean, limitless resource that can be used for electricity production, direct use (without first converting it to electricity) and more efficient home heating through geothermal heat pumps.
The number of countries producing power from geothermal resources could increase 120 percent in a decade, according to the Geothermal Energy Association, from 21 in 2000 to as many as 46 in 2010. But not all countries with geothermal potential can afford to turn the resource into power.
“Two regions of the world have the highest potential and yet the least amount of geothermal energy development,” Fernando Echavarria of the Space and Advanced Technology Office in the State Department’s Bureau of Oceans and Environmental and Scientific Affairs, told America.gov. “One is the East African Rift Valley, which incorporates about 12 countries, and the second is the western margin of South America.”
To help countries in these regions develop their geothermal potential, the United States is working with the Chilean government and private sector, and -- along with 178 partner countries that are members of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) -- with the African Rift Valley Geothermal Development Facility (ARGeo) project in Africa.
GEF, established in 1991, helps developing countries fund projects and programs that protect the global environment. GEF grants support projects related to biodiversity, climate change, international waters, land degradation, the ozone layer and other issues.
HEAT FROM THE EARTH
A nation’s ability to harness geothermal energy depends on geography and geology.
Earth is made up of a solid inner core, a liquid outer core and a solid mantle. The mantle contains a semi-molten layer called the asthenosphere, the solid lithosphere and the crust. The lithosphere is made up of massive tectonic plates that, like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, float on the asthenosphere and support continents and oceans.
Under the plates, hot currents of molten rock move them slowly but constantly in different directions. At their boundaries, the plates can crash together, grind past each other or slip under or over each other. On the surface, the results of these restless boundaries are soaring mountain ranges (Himalayas, Swiss Alps, Andes), earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, hot springs and geysers and potential geothermal energy.
The East African Rift Valley system is one of these regions. It runs from the Red Sea to Mozambique and is called an active divergent rift valley -- one of the few places on Earth where a continent is being pulled apart (rifted) by plate tectonic forces. The region has an estimated geothermal potential of up to 7,000 megawatts. A megawatt equals 1 million watts, or units of power.
ARGeo is an international organization with active participation by Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Uganda, Tanzania and Eritrea. In 2006, GEF approved a $17.7 million allocation to ARGeo for a mix of technical assistance and funds to protect investors from losses during early-stage geothermal field development.
U.S. CONTRIBUTION
Over the past 12 years, the United States has supported geothermal energy development projects and activities in East Africa and has been engaged in the design of ARGeo. Through agencies such as the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), the State Department, the Energy Department (DOE) and the U.S. Geological Survey, the United States is working to become more active in the ARGeo program.
In contrast to the region’s potential, Echavarria said, “a mere 140 megawatts is being generated from geothermal resources in two East African countries.” Kenya’s Olkaria region generates 135 megawatts and Ethiopia soon will generate up to 6 megawatts at Aluto-Langano. Both countries are moving forward to expand geothermal development.
These countries -- and others like Djibouti, which has an agreement with Reykjavik Energy of Iceland to develop a geothermal resource at Lake Asal -- “are not only diversifying their energy portfolio,” Echavarria said, “they’re substituting expensive petroleum products for electricity generation with the development of their considerable indigenous geothermal resources.”
The United States also is working on geothermal development with Chile, which has the region’s largest number of historically active volcanoes.
The Andes Mountains run the length of the west coast of South America -- from western Venezuela through Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina -- where the Nazca plate slides under the South American plate, producing many active volcanoes and a rich geothermal resource.
Many countries in the Western Hemisphere generate electricity from geothermal resources, including the United States, Mexico and many of the countries of Central America. To date, there is no geothermal development in South America, but the government of Chile is interested.
In September 2007, the USTDA hosted a weeklong visit by a 12-person Chilean delegation from the government and the private sector to tour U.S. geothermal companies, institutions and plants, and to attend the annual meeting of the Geothermal Resources Council in Reno, Nevada.
“Today,” Echavarria said, “we have at least three potential partnerships -- companies from the United States that will probably help implement geothermal projects in Chile.”
Geothermal power, he added, “provides countries with an indigenous source of energy that is a cost-effective, clean, long-term solution to paying for expensive foreign oil.”
More information about geothermal energy is available from the DOE Geothermal Technologies Program, the Geothermal Resources Council, the Geothermal Energy Association and the International Geothermal Association.
