Explainer: This is how geothermal energy works

Jan 4, 2023

Many countries around the world are beginning to use more geothermal energy. Image: Viktor Kiryanov/Unsplash

Marcus Lu

Financial Writer, Visual Capitalist

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Visualisation showing how geothermal energy works and is used. Image: Visual Capitalist/Think GeoEnergy Research, US Department of Energy, National Geographic, Renewable Energy Agency

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The US used the most geothermal energy in 2021. Image: Visual Capitalist

Geothermal energy’s total capacity in this dataset differs from the previous value of 16GW. This is due to differing sources and rounding. Image: Visual Capitalist

Forecasted growth of geothermal energy capacity by region. Image: Visual Capitalist/EIA, IRENA, Local sources, Fitch Solutions

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