How can geothermal energy be made faster and cheaper?
During the Geo4all General Assembly Event on 30 September 2025, Marc Londo (NVDE) gave a stimulating presentation on the energy transition and the role of geothermal energy in it.
Although greenhouse gas emissions in the Netherlands have almost halved since 1990, while the economy has doubled in the same period, further sustainability of heating – accounting for around 50% of total energy consumption – remains a major challenge. Geothermal energy has great potential in this regard, but its implementation is hampered by long lead times, slow growth of heat networks, grid congestion and, to date, limited cost reductions.
Together with the audience, solutions were actively sought to accelerate the process and reduce costs.
In the interactive section “Ren je rot”, participants literally took a position on various propositions on how geothermal energy can be made cheaper and faster. This provided valuable insights into where the sector expects the greatest impact.
Important themes:
- Technical innovations, such as horizontal wells, lower return temperatures and more efficient pumps.
- Process innovations, better heat sales, integration with heat storage, standardisation of design and materials, predictable procedures, bundling of procurement and joint drilling campaigns.
- Smart risk management, such as guarantee schemes, covering the risk of overfilling at the start of projects and stable sales markets.
Londo emphasised the importance of chain cooperation, sharing learning experiences and policy continuity. He concluded with a call to the sector: ‘Show that with a clear set of preconditions from the government, we can achieve the intended cost reduction and further roll-out of geothermal energy.’
View Marc Londo’s presentation here (PDF)
