At the present time, ground source heat and other forms of geothermal energy exploitation are an under-appreciated method for clean energy collection. This could change in the near future, as cost-effective technologies are becoming more widely available.
Major advantages:
- Highly efficient and reliable
- Direct heat transfer – no fuels
- Excellent for base load demand
Major limitations:
- Requires electricity to power the pumps
- High expenditure of water
- The installation process can be disruptive
Available incentives in the UK:
- Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) – this scheme rewards non-residential and residential properties that use renewable sources of heat, and ground source pumps fall within its auspices. It is operated in a very similar fashion to FIT, except that it remains open for new participants until 2021, at which point the scheme will either be extended, or replaced with a different version of the program, or terminated.