The European Shallow Geothermal Days took place on 14 to 15 June 2022 at the Institut Cartogràfic i Geològic de Catalunya (ICGC) in Catalonia, Spain. Taking the opportunity to celebrate the ninth general assembly of the GEOFIT project in Sant Cugat (Barcelona), the GEOFIT Consortium attended the event during the 14th of June sessions.
GEOFIT is now in the last stages of commissioning in the demo sites and the event has represented an opportunity to demonstrate the progress in geothermal systems for cooling and heating in retrofitted buildings. It was possible to show the different aspects covered by the project like, improved drilling technologies, the different geothermal energy extraction and ground source heat pumps, thermal analysis, data gathering, radar monitoring of buildings, digital management, and efficiency of the systems.
Shallow geothermal energy represents a well-developed, non-volatile and clean technology for providing efficient heating and cooling across Europe. It is often associated with the use of ground source heat pumps but offers a wide range of applications such as geo-cooling or seasonal heat storage. Still, it is widely considered as a niche technology, however it has the potential to become a powerful game changer towards a decarbonized heating and cooling technology. The next decade from 2021 until 2030 is crucial to fulfil the SDGs defined in the “Clean Energy for all Europeans” initiative of the European Commission. All these aspects are covered by GEOFIT project, and it was possible to show these advances to the geothermal community.
On behalf of the European Commission, the event connected remotely with the DG Energy Representatives, Eva Hoos and Eric Lecomte, who explained the REPowerEU (EU Revolution on Energy Plan) to develop geothermal heating and cooling, and the updated regulatory framework: Renewable Energy RES Directive.
On behalf of the GEOFIT Consortium, Henk Witte, from Groenholland, presented the main project’s results in the afternoon session and it was possible to exchange this experience together with other related European projects and initiatives like GEO4CIVHIC, and leading entities and organizations in the geothermal technologies like GPC IP GEOFLUID, Geological Survey of Austria, DCL GEOENERGY – ITECON, among others.
COMET Global Innovation as leader of the communication activities of the project, brought different communication materials to participate in the Poster presentations, including the project videos and other printed material.
The Shallow Geothermal Energy Days was aimed at connecting policy makers to scientists, to promote and discuss opportunities for boosting this technology in the upcoming decade.
