Geothermal Energy Revolution: New Technology Slashes Costs, Unlocking a Sustainable Future
The Geothermal Energy Revolution: Dig Energy Cuts Costs with an Innovative Drilling Rig
Dig Energy's Innovative Solution and Cost Reduction
Startup Dig Energy offers an innovative solution aimed at reducing the high costs of geothermal energy systems, by developing a small geothermal drilling rig that operates with water-jet propulsion technology. This innovative device aims to make geothermal heating and cooling systems more accessible, enabling them to replace traditional fossil fuel heaters and furnaces, with a promise of up to 80% reduction in drilling costs.
Dig Energy, which has operated in stealth for the past five years, announced its success in raising $5 million in seed funding. This funding round was led by Azolla Ventures and Avila VC, with participation from Baukunst, Conifer Infrastructure Partners, Koa Labs, Mercator Partners, Drew Scott, and Suffolk Technologies.
The Importance and Challenges of Geothermal Energy
Heating and cooling operations account for about a third of total energy consumption in the United States, a figure that can rise to 40% in data centers. Geothermal energy significantly reduces energy consumption for Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems, saving grid operators up to $4 billion annually. According to Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the U.S. needs to drill 6 million feet of geothermal wells daily until 2050, aiming to help stabilize its ailing electricity grid.
Despite long-term lower operating costs, geothermal energy has only accounted for 1% of building installations for decades in the U.S. This is primarily due to the high initial costs of geothermal energy systems.
Types of Geothermal Energy and Dig Energy's Focus
Geothermal energy is categorized into two main types: The first is Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS), which require drilling thousands of feet to harness very high temperatures (typically hundreds of degrees Celsius) to generate electricity. The other type, shallow geothermal energy, which Dig Energy focuses on, is typically limited to hundreds of feet. At these depths, the earth maintains a constant temperature year-round, making it ideal for efficient heating and cooling of residential and commercial buildings.
How Shallow Systems Work and the Role of Installation Costs
In shallow geothermal systems, pipes circulate water underground where heat is exchanged with the soil. In the summer, excess heat is dissipated, and cooled water returns to the surface to cool the building. In winter, heat is absorbed from the ground to warm the building, providing a sustainable and efficient solution for heating and cooling.
The installation of the ground loop (underground pipes) accounts for about 30% of the total cost of a geothermal heat pump, which is one of the main reasons this technology remains more expensive than traditional heating and cooling systems. Therefore, addressing these costs has been a top priority for Dig Energy.
Developing the Water-Jet Drilling Rig
Dulcy Madden, CEO and co-founder of Dig Energy, and her husband Thomas Lipoma, CTO and co-founder, began exploring this field five years ago. They found old research describing how water jets could be used instead of traditional drill bits to drill into the earth.
While there was a lot of research on this technology, it wasn't yet ready for commercial application. Madden noted that many drilling technologies originated from the oil and gas industry, meaning they tended to be large, expensive, and overpowered for applications like geothermal energy at the depths Dig Energy targets.
Dig Energy spent years refining the design of its drilling rig, conducting test drilling near its offices in New Hampshire. They drilled through soil, gravel, clay, sand, and a variety of different rock types, including sandstone, limestone, granite, slate, and shale, to prove the effectiveness of their technology in diverse geological conditions.
Advantages of Dig Energy's Rig Compared to Traditional Ones
Current geothermal drilling rigs can perform the same task, but they are massive in comparison. The most common versions are mounted on the back of large trucks, and while effective in easily accessible locations, they cannot fit through side passages into residential backyards, and in crowded commercial building sites, they take up valuable space and pose a logistical challenge.
Although Dig Energy's prototype is not yet ready for commercial use, it is significantly smaller than the geothermal drilling rigs currently in widespread use. Also, the holes it drills are straighter than those drilled by traditional rigs. These two advantages combined mean that Dig wells can be placed closer together, which is a significant benefit for any developer looking for space efficiency and design flexibility.
When the Dig rig is ready for its first commercial trials, which this seed funding will help achieve, its size will increase slightly, but it will not require the large, dual-axle trucks that currently dominate the geothermal drilling industry.
Company Strategy and Growth Prospects
The company plans to sell its equipment to drilling companies, giving them another option for existing projects and potentially opening up prospects for new geothermal drilling projects. Other companies are also exploring this promising technology.
Madden believes that people should not have to buy a two-million-dollar drilling rig; there should be a less expensive option to enable them to enter this field. She asserts that geothermal energy should be an essential part of 100% of buildings, noting that it is currently only in 1% of buildings, which represents a significantly untapped geothermal market with immense growth potential.
myhome
https://www.aymany.com/
