H. R. 133—1306 
‘‘Sec. 633. Water power technology research, development, and demonstration. 
‘‘Sec. 634. Hydropower research, development, and demonstration. 
‘‘Sec. 635. Marine energy research, development, and demonstration. 
‘‘Sec. 636. National Marine Energy Centers. 
‘‘Sec. 637. Organization and administration of programs. 
‘‘Sec. 638. Applicability of other laws. 
‘‘Sec. 639. Authorization of appropriations.’’. 
SEC. 3002. ADVANCED GEOTHERMAL INNOVATION LEADERSHIP. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 612 of the Energy Independence and 
Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17191) is amended— 
(1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows: 
‘‘(1) ENGINEERED.—When referring to enhanced geothermal 
systems, the term ‘engineered’ means designed to access sub-
surface heat, including stimulation and nonstimulation tech-
nologies to address one or more of the following issues: 
‘‘(A) Lack of effective permeability, porosity or open 
fracture connectivity within the heat reservoir. 
‘‘(B) Insufficient contained geofluid in the heat res-
ervoir. 
‘‘(C) A low average geothermal gradient which neces-
sitates deeper drilling, or the use of alternative heat sources 
or heat generation processes.’’; 
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (7) as para-
graphs (3) through (8), respectively; and 
(3) by adding after paragraph (1) the following: 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible entity’ means any 
of the following entities: 
‘‘(A) An institution of higher education. 
‘‘(B) A National laboratory. 
‘‘(C) A Federal research agency. 
‘‘(D) A State research agency. 
‘‘(E) A nonprofit research organization. 
‘‘(F) An industrial entity. 
‘‘(G) A consortium of 2 or more entities described in 
subparagraphs (A) through (F).’’. 
(b) HYDROTHERMAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.—Section 613 
of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 
17192) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 613. HYDROTHERMAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out a program 
of research, development, demonstration, and commercial applica-
tion for geothermal energy production from hydrothermal systems. 
‘‘(b) PROGRAMS.—The program authorized in subsection (a) shall 
include the following: 
‘‘(1) ADVANCED
HYDROTHERMAL
RESOURCE
TOOLS.—The 
research and development of advanced geologic tools to assist 
in locating hydrothermal resources, and to increase the reli-
ability of site characterization, including the development of 
new imaging and sensing technologies and techniques to assist 
in prioritization of targets for characterization; 
‘‘(2) 
EXPLORATORY
DRILLING
FOR
GEOTHERMAL 
RESOURCES.—The demonstration of advanced technologies and 
techniques of siting and exploratory drilling for undiscovered 
resources in a variety of geologic settings, carried out in 
collaboration with industry partners that will assist in the 
acquisition of high quality data sets relevant for hydrothermal 
subsurface characterization activities.’’.
H. R. 133—1307 
(c) GENERAL GEOTHERMAL SYSTEMS RESEARCH AND DEVELOP-
MENT.—Section 614 of the Energy Independence and Security Act 
of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17193) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 
614. 
GENERAL 
GEOTHERMAL 
SYSTEMS 
RESEARCH 
AND 
DEVELOPMENT. 
‘‘(a) SUBSURFACE COMPONENTS AND SYSTEMS.—The Secretary 
shall support a program of research, development, demonstration, 
and commercial application of components and systems capable 
of withstanding geothermal environments and necessary to develop, 
produce, and monitor geothermal reservoirs and produce geothermal 
energy. 
‘‘(b) ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS.—The Secretary shall— 
‘‘(1) support a program of research, development, dem-
onstration, and commercial application of technologies and prac-
tices designed to mitigate or preclude potential adverse environ-
mental impacts of geothermal energy development, production 
or use; 
‘‘(2) support a research program to identify potential 
environmental impacts, including induced seismicity, and 
environmental benefits of geothermal energy development, 
production, and use, and ensure that the program described 
in paragraph (1) addresses such impacts, including water use 
and effects on groundwater and local hydrology; 
‘‘(3) support a program of research to compare the potential 
environmental impacts and environmental benefits identified 
as part of the development, production, and use of geothermal 
energy with the potential emission reductions of greenhouse 
gases gained by geothermal energy development, production, 
and use; and 
‘‘(4) in carrying out this section, the Secretary shall, to 
the maximum extent practicable, consult with relevant federal 
agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency. 
‘‘(c) RESERVOIR THERMAL ENERGY STORAGE.—The Secretary 
shall support a program of research, development, and demonstra-
tion of reservoir thermal energy storage, emphasizing cost-effective 
improvements through deep direct use engineering, design, and 
systems research. 
‘‘(d) OIL AND GAS TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER INITIATIVE.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall support an initiative 
among the Office of Fossil Energy, the Office of Energy Effi-
ciency and Renewable Energy, and the private sector to 
research, develop, and demonstrate relevant advanced tech-
nologies and operation techniques used in the oil and gas 
sector for use in geothermal energy development. 
‘‘(2) PRIORITIES.—In carrying out paragraph (1), the Sec-
retary shall prioritize technologies with the greatest potential 
to significantly increase the use and lower the cost of geo-
thermal energy in the United States, including the cost and 
speed of geothermal drilling surface technologies, large- and 
small-scale drilling, and well construction. 
‘‘(e) COPRODUCTION OF GEOTHERMAL ENERGY AND MINERALS 
PRODUCTION RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out a research 
and development initiative under which the Secretary shall 
provide financial assistance to demonstrate the coproduction 
of critical minerals from geothermal resources.
H. R. 133—1308 
‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—An award made under paragraph (1) 
shall— 
‘‘(A) improve the cost effectiveness of removing min-
erals from geothermal brines as part of the coproduction 
process; 
‘‘(B) increase recovery rates of the targeted mineral 
commodity; 
‘‘(C) decrease water use and other environmental 
impacts, as determined by the Secretary; and 
‘‘(D) demonstrate a path to commercial viability. 
‘‘(f) FLEXIBLE OPERATIONS.—The Secretary shall support a 
research initiative on flexible operation of geothermal power plants. 
‘‘(g) INTEGRATED ENERGY SYSTEMS.—The Secretary shall iden-
tify opportunities for joint research, development, and demonstra-
tion programs between geothermal systems and other energy 
generation or storage systems. 
‘‘(h) DRILLING DATA REPOSITORY.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, in consultation with 
the Secretary of the Interior, establish and operate a voluntary, 
industry-wide repository of geothermal drilling information to 
lower the cost of future geothermal drilling. 
‘‘(2) REPOSITORY.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out paragraph (1), the 
Secretary shall collaborate with countries utilizing a signifi-
cant amount of geothermal energy, as determined by the 
Secretary. 
‘‘(B) DATA SYSTEM.—The repository established under 
paragraph (1) shall be integrated with the National Geo-
thermal Data System.’’. 
(d) ENHANCED GEOTHERMAL SYSTEMS RESEARCH AND DEVELOP-
MENT.—Section 615 of the Energy Independence and Security Act 
of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17194) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 615. ENHANCED GEOTHERMAL SYSTEMS RESEARCH AND 
DEVELOPMENT. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall support a program of 
research, development, demonstration, and commercial application 
for enhanced geothermal systems, including the programs described 
in subsection (b). 
‘‘(b) ENHANCED
GEOTHERMAL
SYSTEMS
TECHNOLOGIES.—In 
collaboration with industry partners, institutions of higher edu-
cation, and the national laboratories, the Secretary shall support 
a program of research, development, demonstration, and commercial 
application of the technologies to achieve higher efficiency and 
lower cost enhanced geothermal systems, including— 
‘‘(1) reservoir stimulation; 
‘‘(2) drilled, non-stimulated (e.g. closed-loop) reservoir tech-
nologies; 
‘‘(3) reservoir characterization, monitoring, and modeling 
and understanding of the surface area and volume of fractures; 
‘‘(4) stress and fracture mapping including real time moni-
toring and modeling; 
‘‘(5) tracer development; 
‘‘(6) three and four-dimensional seismic imaging and tomog-
raphy; 
‘‘(7) well placement and orientation; 
‘‘(8) long-term reservoir management;
H. R. 133—1309 
‘‘(9) drilling technologies, methods, and tools; 
‘‘(10) improved exploration tools; 
‘‘(11) zonal isolation; and 
‘‘(12) understanding induced seismicity risks from reservoir 
engineering and stimulation. 
‘‘(c) FRONTIER OBSERVATORY FOR RESEARCH IN GEOTHERMAL 
ENERGY.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall support the 
establishment and construction of up to 3 field research sites, 
which shall each be known as a ‘Frontier Observatory for 
Research in Geothermal Energy’ or ‘FORGE’ site to develop, 
test, and enhance techniques and tools for enhanced geothermal 
energy. 
‘‘(2) DUTIES.—The Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) provide financial assistance in support of research 
and development projects focused on advanced monitoring 
technologies, new technologies and approaches for imple-
menting multi-zone stimulations, nonstimulation tech-
niques, and dynamic reservoir modeling that incorporates 
all available high-fidelity characterization data; and 
‘‘(B) seek opportunities to coordinate efforts and share 
information with domestic and international partners 
engaged in research and development of geothermal sys-
tems and related technology, including coordination 
between FORGE sites. 
‘‘(3) SITE SELECTION.—Of the FORGE sites referred to in 
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) consider applications through a competitive, merit- 
reviewed process, from National Laboratories, multi- 
institutional collaborations, institutes of higher education 
and other appropriate entities best suited to provide 
national leadership on geothermal related issues and per-
form the duties enumerated under this subsection; 
‘‘(B) prioritize existing field sites and facilities with 
capabilities relevant to the duties enumerated under this 
subsection; 
‘‘(C) determine the mission need for and potential loca-
tion of subsequent FORGE sites following the completion 
of construction and one year of operation of two FORGE 
sites; and 
‘‘(D) ensure geologic diversity among FORGE sites 
when developing subsequent sites, to the maximum extent 
practicable. 
‘‘(4) EXISTING FORGE SITES.—A FORGE site already in exist-
ence on the date of enactment of this Act may continue to 
receive support. 
‘‘(5) SITE OPERATION.— 
‘‘(A) INITIAL DURATION.—FORGE sites selected under 
paragraph (3) shall operate for an initial term of not more 
than 7 years after the date on which site operation begins. 
‘‘(B) PERFORMANCE
METRICS.—The Secretary shall 
establish performance metrics for each FORGE site sup-
ported under this paragraph, which may be used by the 
Secretary to determine whether a FORGE site should con-
tinue to receive funding. 
‘‘(6) ADDITIONAL TERMS.—