Canada has substantial potential for geothermal energy development. To date, development has all been for heating applications. Canada has 103,523 direct use installations as of 2013. There is currently no electricity being generated from geothermal sources in Canada although substantial potential exists in the Canadian Cordillera. The most advanced project exists as a test geothermal-electrical site at the

Mount Meager massif The Mount Meager massif is a group of volcanic peaks in the of the Coast Mountains in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc of western North America, it is located north of Vancouver at the northern end of the P ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, where a 100

MegaWatt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James ...

(MW) facility could be developed. Potential for enhanced geothermal energy systems (EGS) exists throughout Canada. There are six geothermal power and two direct use projects listed with th
Canadian Geothermal Energy Association

Canadian geothermal resources in context

The

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

currently leads global development of geothermal power with 3,477 MWe of installed electrical power capacity, including 312 MWe added between 2010 and 2015. Whereas, Canada has 0 MW online, however, the geology conducive to geothermal development does not arbitrarily end at the Canada–United States border. Several states that share a border with Canada have significant geothermal capacity in development. It is estimated that Alaska has 95 MW in development, Idaho has 438–514 MW, Washington has 100 MW and even North Dakota has two small developments underway. At present, Canada remains the only major country in the Pacific Rim that is not producing electricity from its geothermal resources. This is even though the colder it is outside, the more electricity a geothermal power plant can produce. This is because the larger the temperature differentials between the geothermal resource and the ambient air temperature, the more efficiently geothermal plants operate. This makes geothermal power ideal for cold northern countries.

2012 Geological Survey of Canada Report

In 2012, the

Geological Survey of Canada The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC; french: Commission géologique du Canada (CGC)) is a Canadian federal government agency responsible for performing geological surveys of the country, developing Canada's natural resources and protecting the e ...

issued a report entitled, the "Geothermal Energy Resource Potential of Canada (Open File 6914) ("The GSC Report"). The GSC Report concluded that "Canada’s in-place geothermal power exceeds one million times Canada’s current electrical consumption." Even if just a fraction of this energy can be used, it has the potential to significantly impact the Canadian electricity grid. The GSC Report also notes that the now defunct National Geothermal Program (a Canadian government research program that ended in 1986) demonstrated that Canada has a geological environment favourable to geothermal development. This program defined high-temperature resources suitable for geothermal exploration and development, particularly in British Columbia, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories. Medium and low-temperature geothermal resources were also defined within sedimentary basins and abandoned mines throughout Canada. Pilot projects drilled at

Meager Creek Meager Creek is a creek in the southern Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in British Columbia, Canada. It flows northeast into the Lillooet River approximately northwest of the village of Pemberton and is adjacent to the Upper Lillooet P ...

, and

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina () is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, after Saskatoon, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 census, Regina had a city populatio ...

further proved that geothermal power production in Canada is feasible. Now, 25 years since the program ended, advancements in technologies have further increased the economic potential of these geothermal resources.

Highest potential regions

For utility-scale electrical generation using traditional dry steam and flash steam power stations, high temperature resources at reasonable drill depths are required. The study therefore defines regions at that are at a depth of or shallower as having high potential for high temperature geothermal systems such as electricity generation. Regions that meet such criteria include

, extreme northern

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, southeastern

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

, and Northwest Territories. For utility-scale electrical generation using

binary cycle A binary cycle is a method for generating electrical power from geothermal resources and employs two separate fluid cycles, hence binary cycle. The primary cycle extracts the geothermal energy from the reservoir, and secondary cycle converts the ...

power stations, regions with

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by c ...

s and warm

sedimentary basin Sedimentary basins are region-scale depressions of the Earth's crust where subsidence has occurred and a thick sequence of sediments have accumulated to form a large three-dimensional body of sedimentary rock. They form when long-term subside ...

s with temperatures between at reasonable drill depths are required. These regions include

, western and southern

, southern

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...

, and Northwest Territories. For geothermal heat pumps, regions with moderate and cool temperature sedimentary basins and/or fractured rock that can easily produce waters or be easy to drill shallow well systems for the installation of circulation loops, are required. These regions include

, southern

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

northern Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ra ...

and

southern Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, southern

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

, northern

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen Provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has seve ...

, Northwest Territories, and

Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' ...

Recent developments

Alberta

On 1 August 2019, Razor Energy - a

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

-based oil and gas company - announced the development of a 21 MW hybrid geothermal and natural gas-fired power station in

Swan Hills Swan Hills is a town in northern Alberta, Canada. It is in the eponymous Swan Hills, approximately north of Whitecourt and northwest of Fort Assiniboine. The town is at the junction of Highway 32 and Grizzly Trail, and is surrounded by Big Lak ...

. The project is expected to be operational by early 2020. On 19 August 2019, the

Government of Alberta The government of Alberta (french: gouvernement de l'Alberta) is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of Alberta. As a constitutional monarchy, the Crown—represented in the province by the lieutenant governor—i ...

announced that it had approved a 10 MW geothermal project near

Rocky Mountain House Rocky Mountain House is a town in west-central Alberta, Canada. It is approximately west of Red Deer at the confluence of the Clearwater and North Saskatchewan Rivers, and at the crossroads of Highway 22 (Cowboy Trail) and Highway 11 (David Th ...

called Eavor-Loop. Like the Borealis GeoPower project in British Columbia, Eavor-Loop will serve as a geothermal project pilot. On 23 August 2019, the

approved the construction of a conventional 5 MW geothermal project near Greenview. The project is being led by Terrapin Geothermics in partnership with the Municipal District of Greenview and PCL Construction. The project is called the " Alberta No.1 Geothermal Project", a tribute to the discovery of oil at the

Leduc No. 1 Leduc No. 1 was a major crude oil discovery made near Leduc, Alberta, Canada on February 13, 1947. It provided the geological key to Alberta's most prolific conventional oil reserves and resulted in a boom in petroleum exploration and developmen ...

oil drilling site in 1947.

British Columbia

On 1 June 2018, the

BC Oil and Gas Commission The BC Oil and Gas Commission is a Crown Corporation of the province of British Columbia, Canada, established in 1998. Its mandate is to regulate oil and gas activities and pipelines in British Columbia. Their mandate does not extend to regulating ...

issued its first ever permit authorizing the construction of a geothermal energy project within the province. Borealis GeoPower plans to drill four geothermal wells near

Valemount Valemount () is a village municipality of 1,018 people in east central British Columbia, Canada, from Kamloops, British Columbia. It is between the Rocky, Monashee, and Cariboo Mountains. It is the nearest community to the west of Jasper Natio ...

as a small geothermal project pilot. On 28 January 2020, the

Government of British Columbia The Government of British Columbia (french: Gouvernement de la Colombie-Britannique) is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of British Columbia. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assumi ...

awarded a permit to the

Fort Nelson First Nation Treaty 8, which concluded with the June 21, 1899 signing by representatives of the Crown and various First Nations of the Lesser Slave Lake area, is the most comprehensive of the one of eleven Numbered Treaties. The agreement encompassed a la ...

to develop a geothermal project for the Fort Nelson area called the " Clark Lake Geothermal Project". As of 2021 Meager Creek Development Corporation holds the only geothermal lease in British Columbia for Mt Meager. The Meager Creek geothermal project is a renewable & clean energy opportunity. Rather than selling the power to the grid, it will be used to make green hydrogen.

Saskatchewan

On 14 January 2019, the

Canadian government The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown-in-C ...

announced it will provide C$25.6 million in funding the development of a 5 MW geothermal power station near

Estevan Estevan is the eighth-largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. It is approximately north of the Canada–United States border. The Souris River runs by the city. This city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Estevan No. 5. History The ...

. The project is led by the Deep Earth Energy Production Corporation.

Yukon

On 29 January 2020, Eavor Technologies and the Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation entered into a partnership to develop a 3 MW closed-loop geothermal system the company calls an " Eavor-Loop" near Little Salmon Carmacks,

External links

* Canadian Geothermal Energy Association,

'. * Canadian Geo Exchange Coalition,
Geo-Exchange in Canada
'. * Geothermal Canada,
Geothermal Canada
'.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geothermal Power In Canada Geothermal energy in Canada,

Canadian geothermal resources in context

2012 Geological Survey of Canada Report

Highest potential regions

Recent developments

Alberta

British Columbia

Saskatchewan

Yukon

See also

External links

References