How geothermal gets built

Catalyst · 29 May 2025 · 32m

What this episode covers

Carl Hoiland, co-founder and CEO of Zanskar, explains the step-by-step process of developing geothermal projects, from initial temperature gradient drilling to proving permeability and managing reservoir decline. He details the historical stall of the industry due to exploration risk and dry holes, and how new technologies like AI and enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) are de-risking the sector. Hoiland highlights Zanskar's rapid 12-month development of the Lightning Dock field in New Mexico and discusses the massive potential of hundreds of gigawatts of accessible geothermal resources in the western United States.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Zanskar, Fervo Energy, Google, EnergyHub
Products
The Geysers, Lightning Dock

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Hardware to Save a Planet · 51m

    How AI Is Unlocking Geothermal Power at Scale with Joel Edwards

    Joel Edwards, CTO and co-founder of Zanskar, explains how the company uses AI and geoscience to locate hidden conventional geothermal reservoirs, reducing exploration costs by up to 90%. Edwards details Zanskar's 'flywheel' process of training physics-constrained models on satellite and field data to predict hotspot locations, avoiding the high subsurface risk that stalled the industry after oil majors exited in the 1980s. He highlights the success of their Lightning Dock project in New Mexico, where AI-driven reservoir modeling identified a highly productive well that maxed out the plant's capacity, and outlines Zanskar's goal to reach one gigawatt of installed capacity within ten years.

  • The Next Byte Podcast · 21m

    224. Geothermal Could Save the Grid. So Why’s No One Talking About It?

    The hosts discuss Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS), a technology leveraging advanced oil and gas drilling techniques to generate baseload power from hot rock anywhere, potentially supplying 20% of US energy by 2050. They analyze specific technologies like PDC drill bits, directional drilling, and fracking, while debating the economic viability of EGS against falling solar and battery costs. The conversation highlights the FORGE project in Utah as a key pilot and addresses the high capital risk and uncertainty surrounding whether these costs will drop sufficiently to compete with established renewables.

  • Hardware to Save a Planet · 45m

    The Future of Geothermal Energy Generation with Carlos Araque, CEO & Co-founder of Quaise

    Carlos Araque, CEO and Co-founder of Quaise Energy, explains how his company uses millimeter-wave drilling technology, derived from fusion research, to access deep geothermal energy. He argues that geothermal is one of the few renewable sources capable of scaling to the 40-50 terawatts needed to replace fossil fuels, unlike solar and wind which face land and material constraints. Araque details Quaise's approach of vaporizing rock at depths of 3-12 miles to produce supercritical steam, enabling the repowering of existing fossil fuel infrastructure rather than building new plants from scratch. He emphasizes the quantitative scale required, noting that drilling 10,000 wells per year is within the current capabilities of the oil and gas industry.

  • How I Built This · 39m

    HIBT Lab! Quaise Energy: Carlos Araque

    Carlos Araque, co-founder and CEO of Quaise Energy, explains how his company plans to unlock global geothermal energy by drilling 20-kilometer deep holes using millimeter-wave technology developed at MIT. Araque details his transition from a 15-year career in the oil and gas industry, including time at Schlumberger, to founding Quaise to address the technological gaps in the energy transition. He discusses the technical mechanics of vaporizing rock with gyrotrons, the economic potential of repowering existing fossil fuel plants, and the challenges of scaling this capital-intensive technology to compete with wind, solar, and coal.

  • How I Built This · 31m

    Tapping the heat beneath your feet with Kathy Hannun of Dandelion Energy

    Kathy Hannun, founder of Dandelion Energy, explains how she spun out the geothermal heating company from Google’s X lab to make ground-source heat pumps accessible for US homeowners. She details the initial failure of a contractor marketplace model and the pivotal decision to vertically integrate by hiring their own installers, which drastically improved economics and customer experience. Hannun discusses the technical advantages of geothermal over air-source systems, the impact of federal tax credits, and the company's expansion into new construction and new markets.

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by Catalyst. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.