Resurging Interest in Utah’s Geothermal Energy Resources
by Eugene Szymanski, PhD and Christian Hardwick
UUtah is a state naturally gifted with bountiful geothermal energy resources. Our location along the eastern boundary of the Great Basin, a physiographic region defined geologically as having abundant geothermal heat close to the Earth’s surface, is fortunate for our population since geothermal energy is a renewable, mostly carbon-neutral, domestic resource that can produce electricity 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Utah has historically harvested this “heat from the earth” and is one of only seven states that generates electricity from geothermal resources, contributing about 1% to Utah’s total electricity generation mix. And while Utah’s geothermal power plants have a present capacity of 73 megawatts (MW), that is only 0.1% of the total estimated undeveloped potential of 49,400 MW, indicating that geothermal energy resources within our borders hold practically unlimited potential to power our electricity needs well into the future.

Direct steam and flash steam power plants use the highest temperature resources (greater than 175°C). Binary phase power plants can operate at lower temperatures. Direct-use applications, below 100°C, include agriculture and aquaculture applications, building heating and cooling systems, and recreational use. Adapted from U.S. Department of Energy (2019).
However, geothermal energy is useful for much more than just utility-scale commercial electricity generation. Geothermal heat manifests naturally at a range of different temperatures beneath the Earth’s surface; high-temperature sources are used for electricity production whereas relatively low-temperature sources may be leveraged for “direct-use” applications wherein heat is used directly in agricultural, industrial, commercial, and residential sectors. For example, heat anomalies in the shallow subsurface may be plumbed to bring geothermal water to the surface for uses such as radiantly heating agricultural greenhouses (examples in Utah are found in Newcastle, Iron County, and Pleasant View, Weber County), maintaining favorable ambient water temperatures in raceways for farm-raised fish, and residential space heating in the form of both in-room radiators that carry warm water directly and heat exchangers that extract geothermal energy from the ground and then convert it to warm air that heats homes, businesses, and public buildings.
Most of the known geothermal resources in Utah occur along the transition from the Colorado Plateau to the Basin and Range Province, and the Utah Geological Survey (UGS) has a strong record of discovering and assessing the scale of geothermal energy resources in the state, including aiding Utah’s first electric utility resource (Blundell) to come online in 1984. As geoscientists, we interpret geological evidence for geothermal systems, publish seminal data and interpretive articles to support development by private industry, and champion the growth and application of this natural resource at all scales. Multiple avenues of research are underway by the UGS to better understand where else this valuable and under-utilized energy resource is located and how it can be used for the benefit of all Utahns.
The UGS published their first hydrothermal-related special studies in 1963 (https://doi.org/10.34191/SS-4; https://doi.org/10.34191/SS-6), and the first assessment of Utah’s geothermal power potential followed in 1966 (https://doi.org/10.34191/SS-14). Since then, the UGS has been involved with more than 150 scientific publications on geothermal resources. The foundational geological and geophysical data products that supported the original publications (e.g., geologic maps, groundwater studies, and well/spring databases) have been updated and enriched continuously throughout the years and have been leveraged by both academia and the private sector for geothermal resource assessment. Improved and expanded data products include statewide magnetic and gravity data networks (see Survey Notes v. 50, no. 2) that collate legacy data with novel collection points to create useful maps of various scales statewide. The Utah Geological Survey GeoData Archive serves as the main clearinghouse for all quality assured geophysical data and information while complementary UGS data resources are actively being developed and publicly released.

Most of the known geothermal resources in Utah occur along the transition from the Colorado Plateau to the Basin and Range Province. Resources in current use include direct-use and power generating geothermal resources. The green regions show well-characterized areas where new resources can be developed. The pink region outlines a part of the Great Basin that has potential prospects defined by surface fault architecture. The black dots are wells that have elevated heat flow measurements, indicating a potential for geothermal resource. The Black Rock Desert has the most attractive potential for future development.
The UGS has been involved in state-of-the-art science and methods to identify and better understand both conventional and unconventional geothermal resources in Utah. Research conducted on sedimentary-hosted geothermal systems throughout western Utah and the eastern Great Basin identified unconventional reservoirs with temperatures of 350°–400°F (175°–200°C) at depths of 10,000–13,000 feet (3–4 km) that can support several power plants in excess of 100 MW, providing a significant contribution to the state’s energy portfolio. UGS research on water in the Uinta Basin (produced as a byproduct of oil and gas extraction) shows that ~97% of the 776 wells analyzed exceed standard direct-use temperature requirements (>120°F/50°C) and 5% of those are capable of geothermal electric power production (>285°F/140°C), providing an avenue to utilize wastewater and repurpose existing well infrastructure all through the area.
In 2018, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) committed $220 million to research and development at the Utah Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) site in Milford, Utah, which is actively working to successfully produce geothermal electricity from hot, low-permeability crystalline rock and demonstrate new technologies, many from the oilfield, for enhanced geothermal systems (EGS). In 2024, the DOE committed another $80 million to research at the FORGE site to continue the project through 2028. Additionally, Utah benefitted directly from federal investment in FORGE in the form of economic gains. In September 2023, Fervo Energy leased land adjacent to FORGE and announced plans to develop a 400 MW power plant called Cape Station that will produce around-the-clock, carbon-free electricity beginning in 2026. Developing the same EGS play that was proven by FORGE, Fervo claims that “Cape Station will provide roughly 6,600 jobs during construction and 160 full-time jobs throughout its operations, generating more than $437 million in earned wages”.
The UGS served as a key scientific partner to the Energy and Geoscience Institute (EGI) in the early competitive phases of the FORGE grant producing critical research works, eventually landing FORGE in Utah. In 2020, the UGS was involved in a DOE, National Laboratories-funded project that built upon previous geothermal research conducted by the UGS and partners (going back to 2010), which leveraged existing and new datasets to identify favorable localities for sedimentary-hosted geothermal resources in deep, sedimentary basins such as the Black Rock Desert of Utah. In 2021, as part of the DOE INnovative Geothermal Exploration through Novel Investigations Of Undiscovered Systems (INGENIOUS) project, the UGS began work supporting a multidisciplinary geothermal resource analysis of the Great Basin to develop input datasets and analysis techniques to target blind geothermal systems, which are geothermal resources with no surface expression like hot springs. More recently, the UGS has been working closely with academia and private industry on multiple research collaborations on geothermal grants from the DOE and the National Science Foundation.
These research programs will help advance geothermal development in Utah, however, exploring for and identifying viable subsurface resources is a time-consuming and costly endeavor, and one that takes teamwork from geoscientists possessing a variety of specialties. The geothermal industry is vying for geothermal development opportunities, however, our insights from working with industry partners is that they require a minimum dataset to “prove” viability before investing in onsite exploration and development. To aid exploration and entice further investment by the private sector, the UGS is requesting a one-time $5 million Geothermal Research Initiative appropriation from the Utah State Legislature to expand its holistic scientific program to collect, interpret, and publish valuable geothermal resources data across Utah’s part of the Great Basin and other statewide focus areas. Sufficient support will allow the UGS to continue setting the pace for understanding the “heat beneath our feet” and make use of our massive undeveloped geothermal resource potential, all while decarbonizing the energy sector, supporting rural communities, and generating new economic opportunities across the state.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dr. Eugene Szymanski
is a Senior Geologist in the UGS Energy & Minerals Program and a licensed Professional Geologist in Utah, with 14+ years of professional experience in basin analysis, landscape evolution, and chronostratigraphy. Eugene currently leads several DOE-funded initiatives that focus on energy resources including the geothermal energy-focused INGENIOUS project in the Great Basin, carbon management projects at the Iron Mountain Mine in Iron County, Utah, and a direct-air capture feasibility project in the Milford Valley in partnership with Houston-based Fervo Energy. He holds an Adjunct Faculty appointment at The University of Kansas, works synergistically with many academic groups and analytical laboratories, and enjoys serving on Geological Society of America committees.
Christian Hardwick
is a Senior Geophysicist and Geologist who joined the UGS in 2011. He has 15+ years of experience globally in geothermal geophysics, is the Geothermal Section manager within the Energy & Minerals Program, and provides geophysical support for the Groundwater, Hazards, and Geologic Mapping Programs. Christian specializes in applied geophysical research methods of gravity, electromagnetics, and thermal fields integrated with geology in a multidisciplinary approach. He has a B.S. in geoscience and an M.S. in geophysics from the University of Utah. He maintains that while having abundant data can be favorable, it is crucial to have the right data to better understand our natural resources and the management of such.