In the SET plan, Europe has set its ambitions also for geothermal. A specific geothermal Implementation plan has been released and is now executed. In order to reach the goals of placing Europe at the forefront of the low carbon energy scene, an Implementation Working Group (IWG) is created to move forward the Deep Geothermal Implementation Plan (DG-IP), endorsed by the SET Plan Steering Committee.
A support unit for the Deep Geothermal Implementation Working Group (DG-IWG) has been set up to achieve DG-IWG goals efficiently and productively. The support unit has three main work streams:
1) to provide the DG-IWG with relevant information and data from the various stakeholder groups for the DG-IWG to be able to take decisions on required actions;
2) to promote and organise initiatives to mobilise the geothermal community to implement the actions identified
in the implementation plan, e.g.: workshops, brokerages, consortium building and exploitation of RD&I results;
3) provide a secretariat for the DG-IWG for assistance on administrative issues and strategy support.
Targets of the Declaration of Intents & Implementation Plan
The Declaration of Intent’s goals are the following:
• Increase reservoir performance resulting in power demand of reservoir pumps to below 10% of gross energy generation and in sustainable yield predicted
for at least 30 years by 2030;
• Improve the overall conversion efficiency, including bottoming cycle, of geothermal installations at different thermodynamic conditions by 10% in 2030 and
20% in 2050;
• Reduce production costs of geothermal energy (including from unconventional resources, enhanced geothermal systems – EGS, and/or from hybrid solutions
which couple geothermal with other renewable energy sources) below 10 €ct/kWhel for electricity and 5 €ct/kWhth for heat by 2025;
• Reduce exploration costs by 25% in 2025, and by 50% in 2050 compared to 2015;
• Reduce the unit cost of drilling (€/MWh) by 15% in 2020, 30% in 2030 and by 50% in 2050 compared to 2015;
• Demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of responding to commands from a grid operator, at any time, to increase or decrease output ramp up
and down from 60% – 110% of nominal power.
The Implementation Plan identifies eight key R&I actions:
• Geothermal heat in urban areas
• Materials, methods and equipment to improve operational availability (high temperatures, corrosion, scaling)
• Enhancement of conventional reservoirs and deployment of unconventional reservoirs
• Improvement of performance (conversion to electricity and direct use of heat)
• Exploration techniques (including resource prediction and exploratory drilling)
• Advanced drilling/well completion techniques
• Integration of geothermal heat and power in the energy system and grid flexibility
• Zero emissions power plants
Further to these actions, the IP envisages work in two non-technical areas addressing enablers and barriers:
• Increasing awareness of local communities and involvement of stakeholders in sustainable geothermal solutions
• Risk mitigation (financial/project).
The IWG goals are therefore the following:
• Ensure the adequate execution of the IP by coordinating EU, national and regional public and private funds and focusing them on the Implementation
Plan’s R&I and non-technical priorities by bringing together European, national and regional institutions committed to funding geothermal R&D,
such as GEOTHERMICA;
• Keep the IP up to date so that it can always represent a reference document for the development of the geothermal energy sector;
• Follow the execution of the IP in cooperation with the European Commission, on the basis of the mechanisms and key performance indicators (KPIs)
to be agreed within the IWG and the SET-Plan Steering Group;
• Establish the IWG as a permanent network of geothermal stakeholders by involving both the industry and the academia in the execution, regular
update and monitoring of the IP.
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