Advances in geothermal systems and steady political backing in the United States present a chance for this clean energy sector to expand.
At Cornell University in upstate New York, scientists are examining how a deep geothermal system can function effectively far from the tectonic boundaries and volcanoes that have historically determined where this energy source is feasible.
By harnessing the Earth’s internal heat, the initiative, called Earth Source Heat, could provide the 2,300-acre (931-hectare) Ithaca campus with fossil-fuel-free warmth, assisting the university in reaching carbon neutrality by 2035.
“We are creating the tools to implement geothermal where people live, rather than requiring people to go to where the rocks are hot,” stated Wayne Bezner Kerr, the project’s program manager.
If successful, it could act as a model for expanding geothermal heating throughout New York and the cold, heavily populated northeastern United States. This would represent a shift, as conventional geothermal systems rely on naturally occurring underground hot water reservoirs, which largely restricts development to the western part of the country.
What distinguishes the Cornell project is that it is an enhanced geothermal system (EGS). This method involves drilling deep into hot, hard rock, fracturing it, and circulating water through the cracks to capture heat for energy.
The technique heavily borrows from oil and gas practices such as horizontal drilling and fracking. However, unlike oil and gas fracking, Cornell’s deep geothermal system operates at much lower pressures, and the researchers have stated they will avoid using explosives or environmentally harmful substances for rock fracturing.
Beyond the geographic benefits, these technological advancements also enjoy a political edge. Even under President Donald Trump, geothermal has largely avoided the polarization that affects other clean energy sources like wind and solar, which is favorable for potential expansion.
Geothermal’s untapped potential
Geothermal energy can be used to generate electricity as well as to heat and cool buildings. The United States leads the world in installed geothermal capacity, with approximately 3.7 gigawatts. Nevertheless, it remains a minor contributor, with geothermal power plants producing just 0.4% of the nation’s total utility-scale electricity in 2023.
However, it could become a “significant” part of the US energy mix within the next 25 years, according to Drew Nelson of Project InnerSpace, a nonprofit focused on scaling geothermal systems.
This aligns with a 2022 analysis that suggested geothermal capacity could reach 90 gigawatts by 2050.
Much of this potential stems from enhanced geothermal systems. In Utah, for instance, what is being promoted as the world’s largest next-generation geothermal facility is currently under construction.
Developed by Texas-based geothermal company Fervo Energy, the Cape Station is projected to add 500 megawatts to the grid by 2028—enough to power roughly 350,000 US homes annually.
The company previously completed a pilot project in Nevada. That 3.5-megawatt facility provides power to the state’s grid and supports Google’s data centers and cloud region in the state.
Nelson described the application of oil and gas techniques to geothermal over the past few years as “a revolution.”
These methods “make existing geothermal sites more efficient as well as opening up vast new swaths of country for geothermal potential,” he added.
Technological progress in geothermal is converging with growing demand for clean, dependable energy that can help the US meet surging electricity needs, Nelson noted.
“Those two things are coming together nicely to create a potential market for geothermal to scale,” he said.
Political support for geothermal energy
Since returning to office in 2025, President Donald Trump has rolled back billions in funding for climate and clean energy investments, ordered a halt to wind projects, and pushed to expand domestic oil and gas drilling. However, geothermal—particularly next-generation technologies—continues to receive backing from the administration.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright, formerly CEO of oilfield services company Liberty Energy, which invested in Fervo Energy, has publicly endorsed geothermal expansion. This year, the Department of Energy (DOE) launched a 15-state initiative to accelerate geothermal deployment by establishing state-level targets, enhancing resource mapping, lowering project costs, and addressing regulatory hurdles.
The DOE also recently announced $171.5 million in funding (€145 million) for enhanced geothermal projects, including field tests for electricity generation and exploratory drilling to identify promising locations.
And while the “One Big Beautiful Act”—a sweeping tax and spending package signed into law in July 2025—reduced some clean energy tax credits, it preserved incentives for geothermal heating and cooling.
“You look at the policies of President Trump and the policies of President Biden, there’s not a lot of overlap in their policies, but geothermal is in that overlap,” said Nelson, adding that one reason for this is its reliability.
“No matter your political persuasions, there’s a realization that we need more of it,” he told DW.
Beyond electricity generation
Electricity is not the only area where geothermal could have a major influence. Back at Cornell, the Earth Source Heat researchers are concentrating on using deep geothermal energy to directly heat buildings, rather than first converting it into electricity.
“If we were to use geothermal resources to meet our heat requirement, we could do so enormously more with a much greater efficiency than we could by converting it to electricity and then using that electricity to make heat available to us,” Wayne Bezner Kerr said.
Cornell is developing a system to deliver heat across the university. On the eastern part of the campus, it has already converted its heating network from steam to hot water, which is more efficient and allows new sources, like geothermal, to be integrated more easily.
In 2022, with support from a DOE grant, Cornell drilled a nearly two-mile-deep exploratory borehole beneath its campus. Although Kerr says the geothermal project has stalled for now amid changes in federal administration and policy direction, he remains optimistic about securing new funding. The ultimate goal is to demonstrate that it can produce heat reliably over extended periods.
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Community model for geothermal energy
Meanwhile, in Hinesburg, a mixed-income housing development is being constructed around a shared geothermal heat pump system owned and operated by utility Vermont Gas Systems. Rather than installing individual systems, homes in this northeastern Vermont town connect to a centralized network—similar to a natural gas line but carrying heated and cooled water.
This model addresses one of geothermal’s biggest obstacles: upfront cost.
“The upfront capital costs are prohibitive, so we have never been able to do a geothermal project,” said Amy Demetrowitz, chief operating officer of Champlain Housing Trust, an affordable housing developer involved in the project.
By shifting those costs to the utility, the system makes geothermal more accessible for affordable housing and larger developments.
“We need to build more affordable housing and then look at how we are heating and cooling,” Demetrowitz said. “We want to make sure it’s an affordable source, and we have been really committed to decarbonizing our portfolio.”
The challenge of high initial costs could be alleviated with more deployment, Drew Nelson pointed out: “The more projects you do, the more that risk can be understood and quantified, and the more the cost is going to come down.”
Edited by: Tamsin Walker