Geothermal energy and the subsurface storage of CO₂ and hydrogen are key components of the energy transition. Their performance, safety, and long-term viability depend on subsurface properties such as permeability, fracture networks, fault architecture, in-situ stress, and thermal conditions. These properties are not static, but reflect the cumulative effects of tectonic, structural, and thermal processes acting over millions of years. Understanding the present-day geometry and physical properties of subsurface systems is therefore only part of the challenge: assessing their behaviour and suitability for energy applications also requires understanding how they evolved into their current state.
In particular, structural observations provide constraints on the geometry, kinematics and timing of deformation, as the development of fault fracture systems; thermochronological data constrain cooling, exhumation, and thermal evolution. Moreover, geophysical observations show the present-day structures and mechanical response of the subsurface, including its behaviour during fluid injection. The integration of geological and geophysical datasets can further provide three-dimensional constraints linking structural architecture to rock physical and hydraulic properties, including fluid pathways and subsurface heterogeneity.
We invite contributions investigating how tectonic and thermal histories influence reservoir architecture and quality, permeability and fluid pathways, containment and leakage potential, geothermal productivity, and the mechanical and seismic response of the subsurface.
By connecting fundamental research on tectonic and thermal evolution with subsurface characterization and energy applications, this session aims to foster interdisciplinary discussion on how geological knowledge can improve the assessment, management, and sustainable use of subsurface systems for the energy transition.