The State of the Art in Geothermal Power Plant

Abstract

This paper provides a technology assessment of current and future technologies for power generation from geothermal resources. A particular attention will be given to power cycles suitable for electricity generation from fractured hot-dry-rock which dominates the Australian geothermal resources. By and large geothermal energy is an untapped energy resource despite its potential and clear environmental advantages (e.g. minimal CO2 emissions) over other sources of energy, such as fossil fuels and nuclear energy. Although according to the IEA geothermal power production is expected to steadily increase at a rate of 4.3% per year reaching a share of 0.6% of the global electricity production by the year 2030, the growth clearly falls short of expectations. The contribution of the geothermal energy to the world