The budget includes $2.3 billion to promote efficiency and renewable energy such as solar, wind, geothermal and hydropower to further reduce U.S. dependence on fossil fuels. The proposed funding for geothermal energy is $62 Million.
The budget figures for the Geothermal Technologies program are:
- 2013 actual spending: $38 Million
- 2014 estimated spending: $51 Million
- 2015 estimated spending: $62 Million - a 21% increase
- The detailed budget estimates for the DoE includes the following relevant language:
Geothermal Technologies.—This program conducts research, development and demonstration in partnership with industry, academia, and the national laboratories to improve the discovery of new geothermal resources and to develop innovative methods for accessing and using those resources for cost-effective baseload renewable electricity generation. The program's geothermal work will concentrate on improved exploration technologies and on developing new technologies for enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) that offer the potential for tapping into enormous geothermal resources across America.
The program's new competitively selected Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) will be a dedicated, DOE-managed, industry/stakeholder operated site dedicated to creating a commercial pathway to EGS through field testing with laboratory accuracy, which will enable transformative, high-impact technologies and techniques to be rapidly demonstrated and improved by increasing technology sharing and leverage with the private sector.
Source: The Washington Post