“The Department of Energy’s investments in enhanced geothermal systems represent a key advancement in our national energy strategy as we explore innovative ways to reach and use geothermal resources beyond what is currently possible,” said Kyle Haustveit, assistant secretary of the hydrocarbons and geothermal energy office.  

The project arrives at a time when energy prices are reaching record highs, spurring lawmakers to find ways to cut utility costs for their constituents. According to the DOE, the project will explore the potential for geothermal technology to provide electricity using the earth’s heat resources by leveraging oil and gas infrastructure. 

“As the first enhanced geothermal systems demonstration site located in the eastern United States, this project offers an important opportunity to assess the ability of such systems to deliver reliable, affordable geothermal electricity to Americans nationwide,” said Haustveit. 

Geothermal energy is increasingly becoming a viable option. While the Trump administration terminated multiple credits and incentives for clean energy, President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill maintained geothermal credits for a longer period, at least on the commercial side. The administration also fast-tracked three geothermal projects in Nevada, reducing approval times to weeks instead of years. 

“The biggest opportunities are where geothermal solves multiple problems at once — high heating demand, high fuel costs, constrained electric infrastructure, long building lifetimes, and owners who value predictability,” said Joe Parsons, senior marketing sustainability manager at ClimateMaster and geothermal energy expert. 

Challenges to Growth 

Thermal energy networks could gain traction. These use a system of water pipes and heat pumps to provide heating, cooling, and hot water by capturing waste heat from sources like the ground, water, or air. The fossil fuel-free heating and cooling can offer health and safety benefits on top of easing electric grid strains, according to the Building Decarbonization Coalition. 

“It turns heating and cooling into an efficiency and infrastructure play, it reduces peak electric demand, it stabilizes operating costs, and it can improve comfort and resilience when designed and commissioned well,” Parsons said. 

However, availability has been a major hurdle to overcome. Underground heat exists everywhere, but many locations lack adequate water or conditions that facilitate the fluid flow necessary to recover that heat energy. Enhanced geothermal systems aim to rectify this by creating human-made underground reservoirs to generate that heat for energy. 

On the commercial side, Dan Ellis, CEO of Climate Control Group, told ACHR NEWS that nothing has changed since the Inflation Reduction Act credits will remain until 2035, and that commercial geothermal has been on an upswing since 2023. 

“I think it will continue to go up as there’s wider adoption,” he said. 

He said the loss of the 30% tax credit from the IRA resulted in business tapering on the residential side, but there is still interest. He said everything from rising energy costs to severe weather incidents and the availability of incentives will impact residential growth. 

“The largest growth we ever had in residential was the post-Hurricane Katrina, when natural gas tripled,” he said. “People came in droves ... there were no incentives, it was natural growth based on external circumstances.” 

Whether the Trump administration’s efforts compel the country, let alone the HVAC industry, to embrace geothermal remains to be seen. Parsons notes that there are multiple complexities surrounding geothermal energy to overcome, mainly the fragmented market, uneven contractor training, and few standardized procurement and financing pathways. 

“What holds it back is not performance; it is delivery friction. First cost is still the headline objection, even when lifecycle economics are strong. The drilling and ground heat exchanger side can feel unfamiliar to HVAC firms and intimidating to owners, so perceived risk is high,” he said. “The advantage goes to firms that specialize in the disciplines required to de-risk all facets of the project and provide effective communication throughout the design, finance, construction, and commissioning process.”