In October 2023, the Cascade Institute’s Ultradeep Geothermal Fellow Rebecca Pearce visited Milford, Utah, home of the Blundell Geothermal Plant that’s been operating since 1984 and the Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE).
The Blundell operation was the first U.S. geothermal plant outside California, and is just a few miles from FORGE, where robust geothermal energy research activity is making strides towards enhanced geothermal systems development.
Despite the proximity of the sites, the Blundell plant is located on a hydrothermal system in permeable rocks that can be used for conventional geothermal energy, while the FORGE site is on impermeable plutonic rocks and allows scientists and engineers to explore the vast potential for enhanced geothermal technology (EGS).
