The UK could meet a significant proportion of its heat and power needs using geothermal energy, claims a new report by Arup. Delivering 12 projects a year for 30 years would contribute 15TWh of heat and 400GWh of electricity annually by 2050, it said.

The report calls on government to tweak the next Contracts for Difference round so it sets a 50MW ‘minima’ for geothermal projects and guarantees an administrative price of £140/MWh for power they produce. It also wants the government to set up a heat production incentive of £55/MWh for deep geothermal projects, which it said could apply to the first 30 projects to create a stable project finance conditions and a project pipeline.

The report says that by 2025 the UK could have up to a dozen projects up and running.

Durham Energy Institute estimates that there is potential for electricity generation capacity using heat from deep (6.5km) drilling, mainly in Cornwall, Devon and Cumbria, using existing technology. It estimates this could provide 91M GWh of heat for the UK – enough to meet supply needs for the UK for 100 years – and 2GW of electricity.  New technology could also make it possible easier to abstract heat from aquifers, which would extend potential sources to areas including Cheshire, East Yorkshire, Worcester and Wessex.

Read the full report here