In July 2022, The UK Parliament’s Environmental Audit Commission (EAC) launched an inquiry
on geothermal technologies as part of their Technological Innovations and Climate Change
inquiry (https://committees.parliament.uk/work/6777/technological-innovations-and-climatechange-
geothermal-technologies/publications/). The inquiry focussed on Enhanced Geothermal
Systems and Mine Water Energy Systems. It investigated the potential scale of their deployment
in the UK to provide heat and power; the role geothermal technologies could have in the UK’s
Energy Strategy and what barriers there are to the deployment, economic impact, and
environmental impact of these technologies. As part of the inquiry, the EAC issued a call for the
submission of written evidence to provide answers to one or more of the following questions:
1. What role can geothermal technologies take in the transition to net zero in the UK?
2. What barriers (technological, regulatory, or otherwise) are there to deploying operational
geothermal technologies in the UK?
3. What is the scale of the potential market for geothermal energy sources and which
geographic or other geological types are most suitable for exploitation of this natural
resource?
4. Are current government support schemes sufficient to grow geothermal energy
deployment in the UK?
5. What environmental concerns are associated with geothermal technologies, and are they
appropriately accounted for in regulations?
6. What risks are there to investors, operators, and consumers of geothermal energy? How
can these be mitigated?
7. How does the density of mine water systems affect their efficiency? Could widespread
uptake of geothermal systems in dense population centres lead to a reduction in their
ability to provide heat?
8. What economic impact could the deployment of mine water geothermal systems have on
the areas in which they are deployed?
The written evidence received by the EAC for this inquiry is published on the UK Parliament
website at https://committees.parliament.uk/work/6777/technological-innovations-and-climatechange-
geothermal-technologies/publications/written-evidence/.
This report captures a qualitative analysis of this evidence. It specifically investigates what
opportunities, challenges and barriers are identified by the submissions as well as the support
measures that are suggested for developing a geothermal industry in the UK