Despite having a large geothermal power potential in the United States, only a small fraction has been developed for power generation. Various barriers, including technical, financial, and regulatory permit delays, are attributed to lower contribution of geothermal energy in the national grid. Unpredictable environmental reviews and permitting timelines are some of the non-technical barriers that can cause delays in geothermal exploration and utilization plans. This study shows that the geothermal permitting timelines can vary from six months to several years, depending on the presence or absence of biological resources, cultural resources, and sensitive environmental issues at the project site. The potential impacts of these permit barriers can range from investors abandoning geothermal development to making the product (i.e., electricity) more expensive and uncompetitive.
OwnerNational Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) - view all
Update frequencyunknown
Last updatedabout 1 year ago
OverviewCEQACove Fort geothermalNEPASalt Wells geothermalSalton Sea geothermalTruckhaven geothermalbarriersenergygeothermalnon-technicalpermitpermittingpermitting timelinesreporttimelines
Additional Information
KeyValue
dcat_issued2022-02-15T07:00:00Z
dcat_modified2022-02-16T16:38:46Z
dcat_publisher_nameIdaho National Laboratory
guidhttps://data.openei.org/submissions/5654
ib1_trust_framework[]
language