Representatives from founding member organizations and interested parties during one of the sessions.
The Bureau of Economic Geology’s newest major research initiative, the HotRock Geothermal Research Consortium, recently held its kickoff meeting at the Bureau’s headquarters in Austin, Texas. HotRock is an industry-funded research consortium that works to find and fill science and technology gaps to further develop the geothermal-anywhere ecosystem.
The meeting was held over two half-day sessions, and attendees included representatives from founding member companies of the consortium, Shell USA, SLB, and Chesapeake Energy, as well as representatives from additional interested organizations.
A host of HotRock researchers reported results from their recent state-of-the-art studies. They also discussed their ongoing work across a wide range of geothermal energy topics and recent additions to the consortium’s research capabilities.
Representatives from member companies were particularly enthusiastic about HotRock’s potential, and shared their priority research topics for the near future.
“Through a multidisciplinary approach,” observed Ryan Sonntag, Senior Staff Geologist and Geothermal Lead at Chesapeake Energy, “the HotRock consortium is prioritizing research on the critical economic drivers to improve commercial competitiveness of next-gen geothermal, while providing companies with valuable data and insights to make informed business decisions.”
For more information about the innovative research of the HotRock Geothermal Research Consortium, or to join, please contact Principal Investigator Dr. Ken Wisian.
Dr. Ken Wisian, Principal Investigator for HotRock, discusses possible areas of focus for future research.
Dr. Shuvajit Bhattacharya, a geothermal lab leader, presents results from recent studies.
