Balancing Geothermal Potential and Subsurface Challenges

There is an enormous potential for geothermal energy to address the issues of energy security and greenhouse gas emissions. Much of this potential remains undeveloped, in part due to concerns about the interface of geothermal energy development with other subsurface uses. In the deep subsurface, geothermal energy targets may overlap with existing oil and gas developments or areas that could be used for carbon storage and sequestration or production of other resources, such as lithium or helium. In the shallow subsurface, geothermal energy developments may overlap with groundwater resources that are critical water supplies and/or have important environmental functions. There is also the potential for shallow geothermal energy developments to interact with other subsurface infrastructure. These interactions in both the deep and shallow subsurface are likely to be problematic under projections of geothermal energy potential that have not considered other subsurface uses. New approaches to subsurface management that consider energy security, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and water security using a range of possible developments may provide a clearer vision to develop the world’s geothermal resources.