Pennsylvania is getting a federal grant to install a geothermal energy project at an existing natural gas site in Western Pennsylvania.
The project will convert an existing natural gas well owned by CNX in Indiana County into an enhanced geothermal well, where underground heat is used to create energy. The process produces “little to no” greenhouse gas emissions, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
The pilot project is the first of its kind in the eastern U.S.
Enhanced geothermal uses techniques like fracking to recover that heat. Geothermal energy currently makes up less than 1 percent of the nation’s electricity generation. But a 2023 Department of Energy study estimated enhanced geothermal could account for up to 12 percent of the nation’s electricity by 2050.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection says the $14 million project will provide heating for nearby buildings and power for the local grid.
The installation will be at a site of a former unconventional well in Indiana County, though the DEP did not say where it would be located. The Shapiro administration is teaming up with the natural gas company CNX to build the project through a subsidiary called CNX Green Ventures.
CNX spokesman Brian Aiello said in an email that the first phase of the project would be “a thorough assessment and modeling of CNX’s Marchand Utica well in Indiana County.”
That well, in North Mahoning Township, was first drilled in 2013, according to state drilling records.
A PA DEP press release called the pilot part of Gov. Josh Shapiro’s effort to address “climate change pollution” and ensure reliable energy for Pennsylvanians.
In its own press release, the federal Department of Energy said the project supports President Trump’s commitment to “energy addition” and reducing energy costs.
The project was funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, passed under President Joe Biden.
