By March 22, 2016 Read More →

Geothermal energy markets heating up – study

Geothermal energy to reach nearly $20.8 billion by 2020 from $12.9 billion in 2015, increasing at compound annual growth rate of 10%

geothermal energy

Geothermal plant diagram Source: geo-energy.com

Global use of geothermal energy is expected to grow at rapid rate over the next five years, according to a new study from BCC Research.

The global market for geothermal power generation was $12.9 billion in 2015 – primarily driven by Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America – and is expected to reach nearly $20.8 billion by 2020 from , increasing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.0 per cent from 2015 to 2020.

This market had a total installed capacity of 12.2 GW in 2014. North America leads the market with a market share of 41.8 per cent, or 5.1 GW, followed by Asia-Pacific and Europe with market shares of 38.5 per cent and 17.5 per cent, respectively.

“In the long term, increasing demand for renewable energy production and infrastructure development in developing regions along with the increasing demand for power transmission across long distances and increasing investments in geothermal energy generation, smart grids and power infrastructure will be key drivers of this market,” says BCC Research analyst Aneesh Kumar.

Geothermal energy is generated from within the Earth. The various sources of geothermal energy include radioactive decay occurring in the Earth’s crust, extremely high-temperature magma, shallow grounds and hot rocks and hot water found beneath our planet’s surface.

The three main applications of geothermal energy include direct usage, geothermal heat pumps and electricity generation. In power generation, the three types of power plants are dry steam plants, flash steam plants and binary cycle power plants.

Geothermal energy

Geothermal power plant in Iceland

  • Global geothermal power generation market for dry steam increased from 3,987.7 MW in 2014 to 4,090.8 MW in 2015, a year-on-year (YOY) growth rate of 2.6 per cent. This market is expected to grow at a 5-year (2015-2020) compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.4 per cent, to reach 5,837.8 MW in 2020.
  • Market for flash steam increased from 5,793.6 MW in 2014 to 6,298.7 MW in 2015, a year-on-year (YOY) growth rate of 8.7 per cent. This market should grow at a five-year CAGR (2015 to 2020) of 11.4 per cent, to reach 10,801.4 MW in 2020.
  • Market for binary increased from 2,339.0 MW in 2014 to 2,463.8 MW in 2015, a year-on-year (YOY) growth rate of 5.3 per cent. This market is expected to grow at a five-year CAGR of 9.7 per cent, to reach 3,922.0 MW in 2020.

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