Geothermal energy is the thermal energy in the Earth's crust which originates from the formation of the planet and from radioactive decay of materials. The high temperature and pressure in Earth's interior cause some rock to melt and solid mantle to behave plastically. This results in parts of the mantle convecting upward since it is lighter than the surrounding rock. Temperatures at the core–mantle boundary can reach over 4000 °C (7200 °F).
Geothermal energy was first used for electric power production in the United States in 1960. The Geysers in Sonoma and Lake counties, California was developed into the largest geothermal steam electrical plant in the world, at 1,517 megawatts. Other geothermal steam fields operate in the western US and Alaska.
In Honduras, there is an important potential of untapped indigenous renewable energy resources. Due to the variability of high oil prices and declining renewable infrastructure costs, such resources could be developed at competitive prices.
Geothermal power is electrical power generated from geothermal energy. Technologies in use include dry steam power stations, flash steam power stations and binary cycle power stations. Geothermal electricity generation is currently used in 26 countries, while geothermal heating is in use in 70 countries.
Energy in Mexico describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Mexico.
Kenya Electricity Generating Company PLC abbreviated to KenGen, is a government enterprise in the Republic of Kenya charged with the production of electricity for the country. KenGen is the largest electric power producer in Kenya, generating over 60% of the electricity consumed in the country.
The Olkaria I Geothermal Power Station, also known as Olkaria I Geothermal Power Plant is a geothermal power station in Kenya, with an installed capacity of 268.3 megawatts (359,800 hp).
The Olkaria II Geothermal Power Station also known as Olkaria II Geothermal Power Plant is a geothermal power plant in Kenya, with installed electric generating capacity of 105 megawatts (141,000 hp)
Geothermal exploration began in China in the 1970s. It was initially handled by national bodies with public investments, and productive wells were transferred free of charge to the final user. Since the mid-1990s, under the framework of privatization and liberalization of the economy, national investment in exploration has been reduced. No new plants have been commissioned in the period 2000–2005. The only electricity-producing fields are located in Tibet. According to the "2005 Chinese Geothermal Environment Bulletin" by China's Ministry of Land and Resources, the direct utilization of geothermal energy in China will reach 13.76 cubic metres (486 cu ft) per second, and the geothermal energy will reach 10,769 megawatts, ranking first in the world.
The Riverside Generating Station is a 261 MW electric generating station operated by Exelon that is located at 4000 Broening Highway in Dundalk, Maryland. The station is on Sollers Point on the Patapsco River.
Sierra de Los Cucapah is a mountain range in Baja California state, Northwestern Mexico. It is located south of Mexicali. The range is named after the Cocopah who arrived in the area around 700 b.c and still live in the area.
Chile represents one of the largest undeveloped geothermal areas of the world. Despite Chile's good economic performance in the late 1980s and 1990s, geothermal energy did not develop, and Chile has been surpassed by other Latin American countries such as El Salvador and Costa Rica in terms of geothermal development and technology. Currently, Chile has only one geothermal power plant.
Enel Green Power S.p.A. is an Italian multinational renewable energy corporation, headquartered in Rome. The company was formed as a subsidiary of the power generation firm Enel in December 2008. It is present with assets in operation or under construction in 21 countries and carries out development activities in a further 5 countries on five continents generating energy from solar, geothermal, wind and hydropower sources.
Renewable energy in Russia mainly consists of hydroelectric energy. In 2010, the country was the sixth largest producer of renewable energy in the world, although it was 56th when hydroelectric energy was not taken into account. Some 179 TWh of Russia's energy production came from renewable energy sources, out of a total economically feasible potential of 1823 TWh. 16% of Russia's electricity was generated from hydropower, and less than 1% was generated from all other renewable energy sources combined. Roughly 68% of Russia's electricity was generated from thermal power and 16% from nuclear power.
Renewable energy in Chile is classified as Conventional and Non Conventional Renewable Energy (NCRE), and includes biomass, hydro-power, geothermal, wind and solar among other energy sources. Most of the time, when referring to Renewable Energy in Chile, it will be the Non Conventional kind.
Hungary is a member of the European Union and thus takes part in the EU strategy to increase its share of renewable energy. The EU has adopted the 2009 Renewable Energy Directive, which included a 20% renewable energy target by 2020 for the EU. By 2030 wind should produce in average 26-35% of the EU's electricity and save Europe €56 billion a year in avoided fuel costs. The national authors of Hungary forecast is 14.7% renewables in gross energy consumption by 2020, exceeding their 13% binding target by 1.7 percentage points. Hungary is the EU country with the smallest forecast penetration of renewables of the electricity demand in 2020, namely only 11%.
The Bjarnarflag Geothermal Station is the smallest geothermal station operated by Landsvirkjun, the Icelandic national power company. It is located in the north of Iceland near Námafjall Mountain in the geothermal area of Mývatn. It lies just a few kilometres from the Ring road, around 100 km from Akureyri, and approximately 400 km from the capital city of Reykjavík. It was officially launched on the 5th of March 1969.
The Salton Buttes are a group of volcanoes in California, on the Salton Sea. They consist of a 7-kilometer (4.3 mi)-long row of five lava domes, named Mullet Island, North Red Hill, Obsidian Butte, Rock Hill and South Red Hill. They are closely associated with a fumarolic field and a geothermal field, and there is evidence of buried volcanoes underground. In pre-modern times Obsidian Butte was an important regional source of obsidian.
