WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), a member of Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) called on Appropriations leadership to include $118 million for the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Office in the Fiscal Year 2024 Energy and Water Development Subcommittee Appropriations Bill. The letter further requests that the bill specify at least $100 million for next-generation geothermal demonstrations, such as enhanced geothermal, which would expand the areas in which geothermal technology can be used.

Geothermal energy is an abundant domestic source of reliable and renewable energy that can be extracted and replenished by heat sources deep beneath the surface of the earth without burning fossil fuels. However, its potential remains largely untapped in the United States.

“As the United States’ energy use continues to grow and our power grid is modernized and transformed to improve reliability and resilience, expanded use of geothermal energy will be essential to support these changes and meet our national emission reduction goals,” wrote the Senators.

“We believe it is important for Congress to continue to support and incentivize geothermal energy research and development to not only provide a reliable source of power generation but also shore up our domestic supply of lithium and other critical minerals as we continue to push toward reaching the United States’ emission reduction goals,” continued the Senators.

The DOE’s Geothermal Technologies Office works with DOE national laboratories, industry, and academia to increase geothermal energy deployment through research, development, and demonstration of innovative technologies that enhance the exploration and production of geothermal energy.

Senator Padilla is a strong advocate for expanding the production and use of renewable energy, including geothermal energy, and was appointed last year to serve on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee (ENR). Last month, he questioned the Deputy Secretary of Energy, Mr. David Turk, on the importance of incentivizing research and development of geothermal energy to generate reliably clean power, lithium, and minerals like zinc. He also heard from Mr. Turk about enhanced geothermal energy’s capability to bolster renewable energy supply and slash carbon emissions. Padilla previously touted California’s efforts to produce a diverse portfolio of clean energy resources, including geothermal energy, in a speech on the Senate Floor.

Full text of the letter is available here and below:

Dear Chair Murray and Ranking Member Kennedy:

As you finalize the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 Energy and Water Development Subcommittee Appropriations Bill, we ask that you include $118 million for the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Office and that you include language in the explanatory statement specifying not less than $100 million for enhanced geothermal demonstration projects.

As the United States’ energy use continues to grow and our power grid is modernized and transformed to improve reliability and resilience, expanded use of geothermal energy will be essential to support these changes and meet our national emission reduction goals. Geothermal energy is a domestic source of reliable and renewable energy that can be extracted and replenished by heat sources deep beneath the surface of the earth without burning fossil fuels.

Despite geothermal energy’s benefits, its potential is still largely untapped in the United States. Congress must support significant geothermal energy research and development through increased funding for the DOE’s Geothermal Technologies Office. This office works in partnership with DOE national laboratories, industry, and academia to increase geothermal energy deployment through research, development, and demonstration of innovative technologies that enhance exploration and production of geothermal energy. For example, in May 2023, the Office awarded the Geothermal Energy from Oil and Gas Demonstrated Engineering (GEODE) grant to an association formed by Project Interspace, the Society of Petroleum Engineering International, and Geothermal Rising, with over 100 partner entities, to transfer best practices from the oil and gas industry to geothermal, support demonstrations and deployments, identify barriers to growth in the geothermal energy industry, and encourage workforce adoption.

Geothermal energy is an abundant resource, especially in the Western United States. We believe it is important for Congress to continue to support and incentivize geothermal energy research and development to not only provide a reliable source of power generation but also shore up our domestic supply of lithium and other critical minerals as we continue to push toward reaching the United States’ emission reduction goals.

By supporting $118 million for the DOE’s Geothermal Technologies Office and including language in the explanatory statement specifying not less than $100 million for enhanced geothermal demonstration projects, we can ensure that the United States can continue geothermal energy research and development and jumpstart geothermal deployment to bring clean and reliable power to millions of Americans across the country. We appreciate your attention to our request. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

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