Melchior Huijts
One of the main arguments against solar, wind and some other renewable energy sources is that they are not good at providing a base load of energy. Many of these sources are very dynamic in the sense that they are dependent on for instance weather conditions. If the sun is shining you will receive electricity from your solar panels, but if a cloud passes by you do not want you lights in your home to glow dim. Therefore, coal- or gas-fired power plants will be crucial for providing a base load of electricity which will guarantee a certain amount of electricity. However, there is a renewable energy source that would be highly suited to provide this base load. Geothermal energy.
As a quick clarification, geothermal energy is energy that is being harvested from the high temperature of the core of the earth. When digging into the earth’s crust, temperatures will rise. The heat that is stored here can be transported to the surface using water and then the energy can be extracted again using turbines. This is already applied in areas where one would expect this, such as Iceland or the Philippines. These are areas that have high volcanic activity, meaning that a lot of this heat from the core is very much near the surface. Extracting this heat is harder at other places, giving the need for new technologies. These new technologies are being developed and already exist(!), but unfortunately need more research in order to meet high enough efficiencies to cut the prices down. [1]
More money for research could really come from existing oil and gas companies. They are starting to understand that the current energy market is changing and they look for promising technologies to change towards. Geothermal technology also requires complex drilling, understanding the behaviour of different ground layers and pumping up fluids from the ground, just like the oil&gas technology require now. I feel as if it would be a great opportunity for these conventional energy companies to invest in this and provide a great sustainable alternative energy source that can take care of the base load in a full renewable energy system.
So please keep an eye out for this technology. It is a rising one that is even already present in the Netherlands [2], but should be given a lot more spotlight by the existing energy companies. I really hope that investments will be made and that this technology will show itself more prominently in the coming years as a promising source of renewable energy.
[1] Meg Chicon, ‘Low-Temperature Geothermal: Digging for its Vast Opportunity’, http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/articles/2012/05/low-temperature-geothermal-digging-for-its-vast-opportunity.html , read on 06-01-2016
[2] Het Rijk, ‘Aardwarmte’, https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/onderwerpen/duurzame-energie/inhoud/aardwarmte , read on 06-01-2016