by Brianna Crandall — April 25, 2014—The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recognized the Oregon Institute of Technology (OIT) on April 23 for boosting its use of clean energy at the first campus in America to be heated by geothermal energy, achieving a major milestone toward its goal of making all seven schools in the Oregon University System carbon-neutral by 2020. Partially through DOE support, the Klamath Falls campus will utilize 1.5 megawatts (MW) of newly installed geothermal capacity combined with a 2 MW solar array, making OIT the first university in North America to generate most—if not all—of its electrical power from renewable sources, and leading the way for other campuses around the nation.
“The Department’s investments at the Oregon Institute of Technology are another example of how partnerships with academia, industry, and the private sector can help cut energy waste and pollution while reducing energy bills,” said Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. “OIT’s use of cutting-edge technology and its commitment to a clean energy future help diversify our energy supply while also bringing us closer to the Administration’s goal of doubling renewable energy for a second time by 2020.”
The school’s Geo-Heat Center has been tapping its geothermal resources to heat campus buildings for nearly fifty years. Beginning in 2008, the Energy Department helped fund further development of the geothermal resources beneath the campus and supported the purchase of an initial 280 kW geothermal power system. By 2010, the small binary unit was producing power for the school’s facilities, and the groundwork was laid to utilize additional geothermal energy through a DOE investment of $3.5 million, with a matching cost-share by the university.
An additional $1 million investment through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) developed an innovative technology to generate electricity from low-temperature geothermal resources at an estimated 20% cost savings over conventional binary systems. Industry partner Johnson Controls Inc. provided $4 million in cost-share to demonstrate this novel, nearly emission-free technology at Klamath Falls, leveraging the previously funded work on the OIT campus.
The Energy Department’s Geothermal Technologies Office funds more than 150 research, development, demonstration, and analysis projects, representing over $500 million in total combined investment. Learn more about low-temperature and coproduced geothermal resources, follow research and development progress with the 2013 Geothermal Technologies Office Peer Review Technical Report, or view the geothermal program achievements in the 2013 Annual Report.
