Eavor Technologies Inc., an advanced geothermal tech company and leader in geothermal energy solutions, applauded bipartisan energy permitting legislation introduced yesterday (July 22) in the United States Senate that includes language that will help to accelerate the deployment of geothermal projects across the country.
The Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 incorporates key provisions of the Geothermal Energy Optimization (GEO) Act of 2024 introduced in February by Senators Martin Heinrich (D-NM), James Risch (R-ID), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV).
"Passing this legislation would mark a major step forward for the future of geothermal in the United States," said Jeanine Vany, Eavor co-founder and executive vice president of corporate affairs. "Geothermal energy, particularly Eavor's closed-loop technology, will be a key component of America's clean energy future, offering reliable and sustainable power with grid-hardening capabilities and minimal water and land use. We commend Senators Manchin and Barrasso for recognizing geothermal energy's importance in the nation's energy portfolio. The Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 will accelerate the development of geothermal projects like Eavor's, bringing them to fruition more quickly across the United States.
"Eavor applauds the introduction of the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024, which establishes a vital framework for advancing innovative geothermal technologies while maintaining essential environmental safeguards."
The Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 introduced by Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and John Barrasso (R-WY) will:
- Streamline permitting by introducing categorical exclusions specifically for exploration drilling and well-field development, expediting the testing and exploration process on federal lands while maintaining important environmental protections;
- Implement regular lease sales to hold auctions more frequently, aiming to expedite the leasing process and encourage geothermal development;
- Set up efficient application processing that will establish clear timelines for agencies to review and process geothermal permit applications, reducing delays;
- Develop cost recovery and concurrent permitting which will help accelerate project development by enabling simultaneous review of multiple project phases and implementing cost recovery measures; and
- Create geothermal ombudsman to provide technical assistance and mediation for dispute resolution, ensuring efficient project development.
Last fall, Eavor was named to Cleantech Group's 2024 Global Cleantech 100 list. This annual list recognizes top companies and promising ideas in cleantech that are best positioned to make a substantial impact on the market in the next five to ten years and build a more digitized, decarbonized, and resource-efficient industrial future.
There are three methods of accessing the Earth's heat: traditional (also known as hydrothermal), Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS), and Advanced Geothermal Systems (AGS). The main difference is scalability. Traditional geothermal has never been globally scalable because hot water close to the Earth's surface is geographically limited, while EGS and AGS next-generation geothermal use advanced technology, borrowed from oil and gas development, to drill deep within the Earth and tap into heat far below the surface.
ABOUT EAVOR TECHNOLOGIES INC.
Eavor (pronounced "Ever") is a technology-based energy company led by a team dedicated to creating a clean, reliable, and affordable energy future on a global scale. Eavor's solution (Eavor-Loop ) represents the world's first truly scalable form of clean, dispatchable, baseload capable, and flexible heat and power. Eavor achieves this by mitigating or eliminating many of the issues that have traditionally hindered geothermal energy. Eavor instead circulates a benign working fluid that is completely isolated from the environment in a closed-loop, through a massive subsurface radiator. This radiator simply collects heat from the natural geothermal gradient of the Earth via conduction. Eavor has been supported by equity investments made by several leading global energy producers, investors, developers, and venture capital funds including Vickers Venture Partners, bp Ventures, Chubu Electric Power, BDC Capital, Temasek, BHP Ventures, OMV, the Canada Growth Fund, Kajima Corporation, and Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund.
