Geothermal Energy Market

Market Overview

Geothermal energy is renewable energy generated from the earth's crust and can be used directly for heating or transformed into electricity. One of the key factors driving the demand for geothermal energy over some other renewable energy sources is that it is available year-long. However, the presence of medium- to high-temperature resources, which are usually close to volcanically active regions, is needed for electricity generation, which is a major factor that has hindered the growth of geothermal energy across various end-use markets.

Market Dynamics

High Capital Cost Investment and Emerging Trends towards Solar and Wind Energy is a Major Restrain to the Market

Energy generation from geothermal power plants is capital-intensive; the development of these power plants involves substantial capital requirements due to high exploration costs and resource assessment, including field infrastructure, drilling of production and injection wells, geothermal fluid collection and disposal systems, and other surface installations. This is one of the key factors discouraging a large number of new entrants that are willing to enter the market. Although, the capital cost of these plants is high. However, they have very low and predictable operating costs, which have supported the market growth among the medium and large-tier players.

Additionally, the shifting inclination of the consumer towards the solar and wind sector for energy generation due to their easy availability and cost-effective prices is another factor that is hampering the market growth.

Advancement in Technology Expected to Add to the Market Growth in the Years to Come In

One of the potential barriers associated with geothermal energy is the limitation of the technical perspective in the field. However, the technological advancement in the enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) technology in recent years, which involves extracting heat from reservoirs through fluid injection into deeper hotter rock, is paving the way for geothermal growth across various markets. Due to which a large number of economies are continuously willing to invest more in these technologies.

For instance, in 2018, the U.S. Department of Energy has announced that it will donate up to USD 140 million to the University of Utah in funding for geothermal research and development over the next five years, and the FORGE field laboratory will be the facility for the work. These funds will be used to conduct site characterization, drilling, reservoir simulation and testing, seismic monitoring, and competitive R&D. Besides, in June 2018, the U.S. Department of Energy also announced up to USD 4.45 million for early-stage development of EGS tools and technologies. Therefore, it can be stated that such investment across the markets is inclined to foster growth in the upcoming years.

Segmental Analysis

By Power Station

The global geothermal market is categorized into three major technologies Dry steam, Flash steam, and Binary cycle, among these, the binary cycle is projected to be the fastest and the largest growth market in the years to come.

Binary Cycle Power Station

The binary cycle power plants are entirely different from dry steam or flash steam power plants. Hydrothermal fluid such as the water or steam from the geothermal reservoir never comes in contact with the turbine units. The ability of these plants to operate effectively across a wide range of applications, even in low-temperature regions, is the prime factor expected to drive the growth of the sector in the forthcoming years. Additionally, these plants also offer cost-effective conversion features in their operation, which is another factor forecasted to influence its market growth.

Regional Analysis

North America

North America dominated the global geothermal energy market in 2019 and is anticipated to follow the same trend during the forecast period. This growth of the regional market can be attributed to the presence of economies like the U.S. and Mexico that holds substantial reserves of geothermal resources, which enables them to contribute to over 30 percent of the global geothermal energy market in terms of capacity. 

The increasing demand for energy coupled with the growing desire to meet it from a sustainable source of energy generation can be anticipated as another factor that has been supporting the growth of the market in the region. Besides, the increasing government funding and policies to develop the region's untapped renewable energy sources to curb emission are also projected to facilitate industry growth.

Countrywide, the North American market is led by the U.S., where the advancement in technology and presence of prominent players in the oil and gas sector, continuously engaged in the drilling and intervention activities have bolstered the growth of the market.

Europe

The European geothermal market is growing at a significant rate, even considering the global context. This is because geothermal energy in Europe is spreading geographically. As per the European Geothermal Energy Council, In 2018, the total installed capacity in Europe stood at 3,091 MW, corresponding to 127 geothermal power plants in operation. In Europe, geothermal energy is primarily used for heating and cooling applications across the residential and non-residential sectors, and as the use of geothermal energy for stable heating and cooling application continues to increase, it is further compelling the investors and policymakers to support this form of renewable energy. This trend across the regional market is creating a lucrative growth opportunity for the players engaged in the oil & gas business to tap into the staggering geothermal potential in the European market and diversify their business portfolio across the renewable sector.

Countrywide, the regional market is driven by countries like Turkey, Italy, Iceland, Germany, and Portugal. Among which Turkey help the largest market share in terms of capacity contributing up to more than 40 percent of Europe’s geothermal energy generation in 2018.

The picture represents the installation capacity of geothermal energy across the European market in 2018, which is driven by Turkey that witnessed an installation of 12 geothermal power plants in 2018 with a total capacity of 290 MW, whereas the market of Iceland and Croatia added one geothermal power plant each with capacities of 45 and 17.5 MW respectively.

Asia-Pacific

Despite the slow growth of the global geothermal market in the past few years. Asia-pacific is anticipated to be the fastest-growing market for geothermal market energy. This growth of the market can be attributed to considerable geothermal potential in Southern Asian economies like Indonesia and the Philippines. This presence of vast potential for geothermal power generation in these economies has compelled the national government to take initiatives and adopt policies. These policies can enable and help the operators to engage in the oil and gas sector to explore reserves of geothermal energy across the region, therefore supporting the market growth.

Geothermal Energy Market Segmentation

By Power Station

• Dry Steam Power Station
• Flash Steam Power Station
• Binary Cycle Power Station

By End-User

• Residential
• Non-Residential

By Region

North America

• The U.S.
• Canada
• Mexico

Europe

• Germany
• France
• The U.K.
• Italy
• The Rest of Europe

Asia-Pacific

• China
• Japan
• India
• South Korea
• Australia
• The Rest of Asia-Pacific

Central and South America and the Caribbean

• Brazil
• Argentina
• Colombia
• The Rest of Central and South America and the Caribbean

The Middle East

• Saudi Arabia
• The UAE
• Oman
• Bahrain
• Turkey
• The Rest of Middle East

Africa

• Nigeria
• South Africa
• The Rest of Africa