Geothermal power tapping its potential

[ElectricGrid]

The hang-up that has prevented this seemingly inexhaustible energy source from finding widespread acceptance has been the initial cost of the system, especially deep drilling. A typical geothermal power plant costs three to four times more to build than a plant that burns natural gas, Gawell said.

But after the plant is paid for, it is much cheaper to run because the fuel—warm groundwater—costs virtually nothing.

"It's like deciding between two cars, one that costs $10,000 and one that costs $35,000," he said. "But the $35,000 car comes with a lifetime supply of gas. Now that energy prices are high, people are beginning to think about what they pay for fuel."

When the seminary's geothermal system is completed, the final cost is likely to be more than $20 million, said the seminary's Burnley. But heating oil prices have risen dramatically in the last five years, from 90 cents to $2.80 a gallon, she said.

And the new system will allow buildings that were stiflingly hot in summer to be used for the seminary's expanding summer programs. Plus, the system will reduce the seminary's carbon footprint by an estimated 1,400 tons of emissions annually.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/green/chi-geothermal-swanson_11aug11,0,5668626.story

[phantom power]

1. This sets the new Bad Technology Reporting record...

I literally cannot tell from this article if they are talking about geothermal in the original sense of "using earths's heat for net energy extraction" or the newer sense of "using earth as a heat reservoir for a heat-pump."

[DCKit]

2. 1,500' deep in Manhattan - I doubt they're approaching steam temperatures.

And I don't get this obsession with "dumping" heat either. No thought at all of using the heat of summer to provide potable hot water + (heat cycle) AC + refrigeration. Just dump it.

Granted, by dumping their excess heat and cold underground, they're creating a sink for the opposing seasons, but these systems have far more potential.

Disclaimer: I've been reading a lot on the subject. A heat-pump uses slightly less then 2Kw of electricity to create >6Kw of heating. Why throw the "cold" away?