The US Department of Energy has announced a $10 million grant to establish a consortium to develop a roadmap to harness geothermal oil and gas knowledge and technology.
The US Department of Energy has announced a $10 million Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) to develop a roadmap to address technology and knowledge gaps using technology and best practices from oil and gas. Industry.
This FOA is part of our recent Geothermal Energy with Oil and Gas Democratic Engineering (GEODE) report. The roadmap generated from this FOA will provide up to $155 million in additional funding to address identified gaps.
Grant applications must be made through the EERE Exchange website and must be completed by October 28, 2022. Full funding opportunities can also be viewed through this website.
The Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO) expects to make one (1) $10 million award under this FOA. Then, for an additional 4-year period and pending Congressional appropriations, the GEODE consortium will submit competitive solicitations for up to $155 million in research projects.
GEODE Manager
The GEODE FOA requires an administrator to establish and lead a consortium that facilitates collaborative research, development and demonstration (RD&D). The Consortium’s objectives are to transfer and adapt technology from oil and gas, generate heat and power from oil and gas assets, assess and advise on regulatory and licensing barriers, and create opportunities for skilled oil and gas in the geothermal sector. Manpower. The ultimate goal is to significantly expand domestic geothermal distribution.
US individuals or entities may apply as a GEODE Consortium Administrator. The administrator must be able to perform many tasks including:
- Establish a clear structure and mechanism for initiating and executing the research agenda as defined by the consortium members and the DOE
- Manage RD&D efforts in support of corporate priorities
- Attract and ensure cooperative membership and collaboration among key industry partners in both the geothermal and oil and gas industries.
- Provide strong organizational leadership in technical areas and establish a strong model for leveraging RD&D expertise and non-DOE funding (if possible) to leverage business opportunities.
More details about applicant eligibility and required skills are in the FOA.
Aspects of GEODE
DOE expects GeoDE to be a 5-year effort, with competitive solicitations for research projects beginning in the second year. These competitive solicitations advance the goals of the problem by simultaneously conducting research in four interrelated areas of focus called “themes.”
Aspect 1: Technology Transfer and R&D In this area, the consortium explores the technology and work flow needs of the geothermal industry and bridges the gap between geothermal and oil and gas in these areas. This aspect identifies ways to incorporate existing oil and gas technologies and methods into geothermal and sets priorities for emerging gaps.
Face 2: Demonstrations and deployment. This aspect seeks to overcome barriers to assessing and exploiting geothermal resources currently accessible by oil and gas infrastructure. The consortium will achieve this in a number of ways, including better information provision, resource and engineering assessments, and projects that demonstrate the utility and commercial viability of generating geothermal heat and electricity from existing underground infrastructure.
Aspect 3: Analysis and Control Barriers. As such, the consortium will identify and assess non-technical barriers to the expansion of the oil and gas industry into the geothermal space.
Aspect 4: Human Resources and Communication. Collaborative activities in this aspect include assessing future geothermal workforce needs and potential gaps and determining the educational and professional experiences needed to fill those gaps. The consortium identifies better communication methods about geothermal energy.
Source: US Department of Energy
