Geothermal Energy potentials in the North

It is uncertain how much the Highlands and Islands will benefit in perpetuity from the boom in renewable electricity production and storage. Half of our energy needs are not for electricity, but for heat. In this talk Dr Iain Neill from the University of Glasgow suggests exploring our potential for shallow and deep geothermal heat production. The further you drill into the ground, the hotter it gets, and deep geothermal drilling (>1 km) is now in favour, including in Cornwall. Shallower drilling is now being explored to heat the University of Leeds. Geothermal energy has been mooted elsewhere in Scotland but is hampered by a lack of geological data necessary to de-risk investment in drilling. Yet, such systems are low-carbon, quiet, require little land, are reliable regardless of weather or shocks to the national grid, and built to last 50 years or more. They should be owned and distributed locally to benefit communities.

A discussion on where geothermal heat comes from, how it is distributed, what rocks across the Highlands and Islands might be of interest, from granites to fault zones, and how heat may be extracted. This is research that is only just getting started, perhaps with potential for some of the larger communities around the NW Highlands. Dr Neill will present the ideas that are coming forward and wants to ask for your input, positive or negative, about whether geothermal systems might be added to our energy mix.

Host or Publisher North West Highlands Geopark