Type:
Research Report, Presentation
Links:
geothermalcanada.org/s/Geothermal+Canada+WGC+2023_To+Post.pdf
geothermalcanada.org/s/Geothermal-Canada-WGC-Presentation.pdf
Authors:
Dr. Stephen Grasby, Dr. Jasmin Raymond, Dr. Catherine Hickson, Katherine Huang, Emily Smejkal, Mafalda Miranda, Derek Fraser, Kass Harbottle, Daniel Alonso Torres, John Ebell, Julie Dixon, Emily Olsen, Ashley Drobot, Jeanine Vany, Kirsten Marcia, Maurice Colpron, Alireza Dehghani-Sanij, Andrew Wigston, Gord Brasnett, Martyn Unsworth, Phil Harms
Citation:
Grasby, S. E., Raymond, J., Hickson, C., Huang, K., Smejkal, E., Miranda, M., Fraser, D., Harbottle, K., Torres, D. A., Ebell, J., Dixon, J., Olsen, E., Drobot, A., Vany, J., Marcia, K., Colpron, M., Dehghani-Sanij, A., Wigston, A., Brasnett, G., Unsworth, M., Harms, P. Sep. 2023. Geothermal Canada.
Abstract:
Geothermal energy exploration, development, and research has been ongoing in Canada for several decades. The country’s cold climate and the push to develop renewable energy sources have driven interest in geothermal energy. Despite this drive, regulatory complexities and competition with other relatively inexpensive energy sources with already installed infrastructure, have hindered development. As such, interest has grown then fallen several times with the energy economy, leaving projects at a standstill. As of January 2023, there are currently no power producing geothermal projects in operation in Canada. Many hot spring pool and spa complexes remain active and Canada is a leading country in the installation of ground source heat pumps (geoexchange systems). However, in the last decade, interest in deep geothermal systems has renewed and there are many new projects starting up across several provinces and territories. Also, projects that showed limited progress for many years, such as the Mount Meager, British Columbia, resource, have started to renew their developments. Research is also growing across prominent research groups and universities. Areas of focus include both building upon previous studies, such as thermal gradients and heat flow in sedimentary basins, as well as researching new methods and resources, such as ground-source heat pumps, closed-loop systems, integrated geothermal operations and hybrid systems including heat storage. Development is being supported by federal, provincial, and territorial governments through grants and development of regulatory frameworks. Although challenges still remain for Canada to develop its geothermal energy resources, project advances on several power and thermal projects, ongoing research, funding, and regulatory acts are all moving forward to support geothermal development.
Keywords:
Canada, Country Update, Direct-Use, Power Generation, Academic Research, Regulatory Framework