Geothermal Energy Use, Country Update for Czech Republic

Abstract

The geothermal energy use in the Czech Republic has been constantly increasing despite the financial demand, especially in the initial investment phases. Besides heat extraction from hydrothermal resources, the importance of geothermal drilling using different technological approaches begins to grow. Numerous research studies show that sufficient temperature to produce electricity can be encountered in depth of about 5 km. The existing natural and geologic conditions, as well as market conditions in energy supply, explain the current status in development of geothermal electricity utilization in the Czech Republic. Although first efforts for deep geothermal projects development are currently being undertaken, the most exploitable resources are those of low temperatures used for geothermal heating. Typical cases of geothermal heating are summarized by the presented article.