1.This Act may be cited as the
National Geothermal Initiative Act of
2007
.
2.Congress finds that—
(1)domestic
geothermal resources have the potential to provide vast amounts of clean,
renewable, and reliable energy to the United States;
(2)Federal policies
and programs are critical to achieving the potential of those resources;
(3)Federal tax
policies should be modified to appropriately support the longer lead-times of
geothermal facilities and address the high risks of geothermal exploration and
development;
(4)sustained and
expanded research programs are needed—
(A)to support the
goal of increased energy production from geothermal resources; and
(B)to develop the
technologies that will enable commercial production of energy from more
geothermal resources;
(5)a comprehensive
national resource assessment is needed to support policymakers and industry
needs;
(6)a national
exploration and development technology and information center should be
established to support the achievement of increased geothermal energy
production; and
(7)implementation
and completion of geothermal and other renewable initiatives on public land in
the United States is critical, consistent with the principles and requirements
of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act
of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) and other applicable law.
3.Congress declares that it
shall be a national goal to achieve 20 percent of total electrical energy
production in the United States from geothermal resources by not later than
2030.
4.In this Act:
(1)The
term Initiative means the national geothermal initiative
established by section 5(a).
(2)The term national goal means the national goal
of increased energy production from geothermal resources described in section
3.
(3)The
term Secretary means the Secretary of Energy.
5.National
geothermal initiative
(a)There
is established a national geothermal initiative under which the Federal
Government shall seek to achieve the national goal.
(b)Federal support
and coordinationIn carrying out the Initiative, each Federal
agency shall give priority to programs and efforts necessary to support
achievement of the national goal to the extent consistent with applicable
law.
(c)Energy and
Interior goals
(1)In carrying out the Initiative, the Secretary and the
Secretary of the Interior shall establish and carry out policies and
programs—
(A)to characterize
the complete geothermal resource base (including engineered geothermal systems)
of the United States by not later than 2010;
(B)to sustain an
annual growth rate in the use of geothermal power, heat, and heat pump
applications of at least 10 percent;
(C)to demonstrate
state-of-the-art energy production from the full range of geothermal resources
in the United States;
(D)to achieve new
power or commercial heat production from geothermal resources in at least 25
States; and
(E)to develop the
tools and techniques to construct an engineered geothermal system power
plant.
(2)Not later than 1
year after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 3 years thereafter, the
Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior shall jointly submit to the
appropriate Committees of Congress a report that describes—
(A)the proposed plan to achieve the goals
described in paragraph (1); and
(B)a description of the progress during the
period covered by the report toward achieving those goals.
(d)Geothermal
research, development, demonstration, and commercial application
(1)The Secretary shall carry out a program of geothermal
research, development, demonstration, outreach and education, and commercial
application to support the achievement of the national goal.
(2)In carrying out the geothermal research program described
in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—
(A)prioritize
funding for the discovery and characterization of geothermal resources;
(B)expand funding
for cost-shared drilling;
(C)(i)establish, at a
national laboratory or university research center selected by the Secretary, a
national geothermal exploration research and information center;
(ii)support development and
application of new exploration and development technologies through the center;
and
(iii)in cooperation with the Secretary
of the Interior, disseminate geological and geophysical data to support
geothermal exploration activities through the center;
(D)support
cooperative programs with and among States, including with the Great Basin
Center for Geothermal Energy, the Intermountain West Geothermal Consortium, and
other similar State and regional initiatives, to expand knowledge of the
geothermal resource base of the United States and potential applications of
that resource base;
(E)improve and
advance high-temperature and high-pressure drilling, completion, and
instrumentation technologies benefiting geothermal well construction;
(F)demonstrate
geothermal applications in settings that, as of the date of enactment of this
Act, are noncommercial;
(G)research,
develop, and demonstrate engineered geothermal systems techniques for
commercial application of the technologies, including advances in—
(i)reservoir
stimulation;
(ii)reservoir
characterization, monitoring, and modeling;
(iii)stress
mapping;
(iv)tracer
development;
(v)3-dimensional
tomography; and
(vi)understanding
seismic effects of deep drilling and reservoir engineering; and
(H)support the
development and application of the full range of geothermal technologies and
applications.
(3)Authorization
of appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated to the
Secretary to carry out this subsection—
(A)$75,000,000 for
fiscal year 2008;
(B)$110,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012; and
(C)for fiscal year
2013 and each fiscal year thereafter through fiscal year 2030, such sums as are
necessary.
(e)Geothermal
assessment, exploration information, and priority activities
(1)In
carrying out the Initiative, the Secretary of the Interior—
(A)acting through
the Director of the United States Geological Survey, shall, not later than
2010—
(i)conduct and
complete a comprehensive nationwide geothermal resource assessment that
examines the full range of geothermal resources in the United States;
and
(ii)submit to the
appropriate committees of Congress a report describing the results of the
assessment; and
(B)in planning and
leasing, shall consider the national goal established under this Act.
(2)Authorization
of appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated to the
Secretary of the Interior to carry out this subsection—
(A)$15,000,000 for
fiscal year 2008;
(B)$25,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2009 to 2012; and
(C)for fiscal year
2013 and each fiscal year thereafter through fiscal year 2030, such sums as are
necessary.
6.Intermountain
West Geothermal ConsortiumSection 237 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005
(42 U.S.C. 15874) is amended by adding at the end the following:
(d)Authorization
of appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated to
carry out this section—
(1)$5,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013; and
(2)such sums as are
necessary for each of fiscal years 2014 through
2020.
.
7.International
market support for geothermal energy development
(a)United States
Agency for International DevelopmentThe United States Agency for
International Development, in coordination with other appropriate Federal and
multilateral agencies, shall support international and regional development to
promote the use of geothermal resources, including (as appropriate) the African
Rift Geothermal Development Facility.
(b)United States
Trade and Development AgencyThe United States Trade and
Development Agency shall support the Initiative by—
(1)encouraging
participation by United States firms in actions taken to carry out subsection
(a); and
(2)providing grants
and other financial support for feasibility and resource assessment
studies.
(c)Authorization
of appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated such
sums as are necessary to carry out this section.