3.0.0 1155 2023-01-11T13:27:18Z 2023-01-11T13:27:18Z Senate S 2015-04-30 114 sseg00 Energy and Natural Resources Committee Senate Standing Referred to 2015-04-30T18:51:12Z Geothermal Energy Opportunities Act 114 1057 S 2015-05-19 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Hearings held. Related bill CRS 2015-04-30 sseg00 Energy and Natural Resources Committee Senate Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. IntroReferral 2015-04-30 Introduced in Senate IntroReferral 10000 9 Library of Congress T000464 Sen. Tester, Jon [D-MT] Jon Tester D MT N Energy Alternative and renewable resources Energy efficiency and conservation Energy research Government information and archives Government lending and loan guarantees Government trust funds Land use and conservation Lighting and heating Lighting, heating, cooling Oil and gas Research and development Energy 00 2015-04-30 Introduced in Senate 2016-07-22T19:23:32Z Geothermal Exploration and Technology Act of 2015

This bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a direct loan program for high risk geothermal exploration wells, and gives preference to loans to carry out projects that are likely to lead to successful new geothermal development leading to electricity production. Data from exploratory wells must be provided to DOE and the Department of the Interior for use in mapping national geothermal resources and other uses. DOE must determine the number of wells for each selected geothermal project for which a loan may be made.

The Geothermal Investment Fund is established to carry out the program. Amounts repaid on loans must be deposited in the Fund.

The bill amends the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to require DOE to establish a program of research, development, demonstration, and commercial application for geothermal heat pumps and the direct use of geothermal energy. In carrying out the program, DOE must identify and mitigate potential environmental impacts. DOE must make grants to promote the development of geothermal heat pumps and the direct use of geothermal energy, giving priority to proposals that apply to large buildings, commercial districts, and residential communities.

The bill amends the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to allow the holder of an oil and gas lease of public land to also lease the land for the production of geothermal energy if: (1) the holder of the oil and gas lease has an approved drilling permit, (2) the geothermal energy will be produced from a well producing or capable of producing oil and gas, (3) the geothermal lease would serve the public interest, and (4) oil and gas production is currently occurring under the existing lease.

]]> Geothermal Exploration and Technology Act of 2015 Display Title Geothermal Exploration and Technology Act of 2015 Official Title as Introduced A bill to promote the mapping and development of United States geothermal resources by establishing a direct loan program for high risk geothermal exploration wells, to amend the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to improve geothermal energy technology and demonstrate the use of geothermal energy in large scale thermal applications, and for other purposes. Introduced in Senate IS Short Titles as Introduced Geothermal Exploration and Technology Act of 2015 Introduced in Senate 2015-04-30T04:00:00Z https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-114s1155is/xml/BILLS-114s1155is.xml 2015-04-30 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain. Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress This file contains bill summaries and statuses for federal legislation. A bill summary describes the most significant provisions of a piece of legislation and details the effects the legislative text may have on current law and federal programs. Bill summaries are authored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress. As stated in Public Law 91-510 (2 USC 166 (d)(6)), one of the duties of CRS is "to prepare summaries and digests of bills and resolutions of a public general nature introduced in the Senate or House of Representatives". For more information, refer to the User Guide that accompanies this file.