This data layer contains geothermal resource areas and their\ntechnical potential used in long-term electric system modeling for Integrated\nResource Planning and SB 100. Geothermal resource areas are delineated by Known\nGeothermal Resource Areas (KGRAs) (Geothermal Map of California, 2002), other\ngeothermal fields (CalGEM Field Admin Boundaries, 2020), and Bureau of Land Management\n(BLM) Geothermal Leasing Areas (California\nBLM State Office GIS Department, 2010). The fields that are considered in our assessment\nhave enough information known about the geothermal reservoir that an electric\ngeneration potential was estimated by USGS (Williams et al. 2008) or estimated\nby a BLM Environmental Impact Statement (El Centro Field Office, 2007). For the USGS identified\ngeothermal systems, any point that lies within 2 km of a field is summed to represent\nthe total mean electrical generation potential from the entire field.
\n\nGeothermal field boundaries are constructed for identified\ngeothermal systems that lie outside of an established geothermal field. A\ncircular footprint is assumed with a radius determined by the area needed to support\nthe mean resource potential estimate, assuming a 10 MW/km2 power density.
\n\nSeveral geothermal fields have power plants that are currently\ngenerating electricity from the geothermal source. The total production for\neach geothermal field is estimated by the CA Energy Commission\u2019s\u00a0Quarterly Fuel and Energy Report\u00a0that tracks all power plants greater than 1 MW. The nameplate\ncapacity of all generators in operation as of 2021 were used to inform how much\nof the geothermal fields are currently in use. This source yields inconsistent\nresults for the power plants in the Geysers. Instead, an estimate from the net energy\ngeneration from those power plants is used. Using these estimates, the net\nundeveloped geothermal resource potential can be calculated.\u00a0
\n\nFinally, we apply the protected area layer for geothermal to\nscreen out those geothermal fields that lie entirely within a protected area. The\nprotected area layer is compiled from public and private lands that have\nspecial designations prohibiting or not aligning with energy development.\u00a0
This layer is featured in the\u00a0CEC 2023 Land-Use Screens for Electric System Planning\u00a0data viewer.
For more information about this layer and its use in electric system planning, please refer to the\u00a0Land Use Screens Staff Report in the CEC Energy Planning Library.\u00a0
Change Log:
Version 1.1 (January 18, 2024)
Data Dictionary:
\n\nTotal_MWe_Mean: The estimated resource potential from each\ngeothermal field. All geothermal fields, except for Truckhaven, was given an\nestimate by Williams et al. 2008. If more than one point resource intersects (within\n2km of) the field, the sum of the individual geothermal systems was used to\nestimate the magnitude of the resource coming from the entire geothermal field.\nEstimates are given in MW.
\n\nTotal_QFER_NameplateCapacity: The total nameplate capacities\nof all generators in operation as of 2021 that intersects (within 2 km of) a\ngeothermal field. The resource potential already in use for the Geysers is\ndetermined by Lovekin et al. 2004. Estimates are given in MW.\u00a0
\n\nProtectedArea_Exclusion: Binary value representing whether\na field is excluded by the land-use screen or not. Fields that are excluded\nhave a value of 1; those that aren\u2019t have a value of 0. \u00a0
\n\nNetUndevelopedRP: The net undeveloped resource potential for\neach geothermal field. This field is determined by subtracting the total resource\npotential in use (Total_QFER_NameplateCapacity) from the total estimated\nresource potential (Total_MWe_Mean). Estimates are given in MW.\u00a0
\n\nAcres_GeothermalField: This is the geodesic acreage of each\ngeothermal field. Values are reported in International Acres using a NAD 1983 California\n(Teale) Albers (Meters) projection.\u00a0
References:\u00a0