The Air Force is testing out a novel source of clean energy that could change how bases are powered nationwide while ushering in unprecedented energy resilience.
As Interesting Engineering reports, The Department of the Air Force recently awarded its first contract to Sage Geosystems to determine the viability of Geopressured Geothermal Systems in powering bases.
The contract is for $1.9 million, with Sage chipping in an identical amount for the demonstration project. Sage will construct the test well in 2025 and stage it off-site in Starr County, Texas. If the venture is a success, it would be the first GGS project globally to generate electricity, per the company's press release.
GGS tech is exciting because of its versatility when compared to conventional geothermal techniques.
While those techniques require unique geological formations of hot water and steam, Sage is one of many companies leveraging and reshaping existing fracking technology to draw out thermal energy from miles under the earth's surface.
Energy resilience is a growing national security concern for branches like the Air Force. The military is increasingly aiming to reduce reliance on foreign countries for fuels like gas, oil, and coal. Meanwhile, the electrical grid is facing record demand as consumers put unprecedented stress on it during extreme weather events like heat waves.
Renewable energy sources have already played a big role in boosting grid resilience. Getting away from dirty energy that only exacerbates extreme weather and the warming of the planet, is another major benefit to technologies like GGS.
With energy resilience at a premium, a green energy source that is reliable and independent is certainly worth exploring for the Air Force.
In a statement, Director of the Air Force Office of Energy Assurance Kirk Phillips called the contract a "step forward in the Air Force's push for energy resilience." The Air Force hopes to bring GGS to power Houston's Ellington Field Joint Air Reserve Base if the demonstration succeeds.
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"This project will improve Ellington Field's ability to maintain operations during electrical grid outages and be completely self-sufficient for their energy needs," Phillips said.
He doesn't want to stop there, either. Phillips says the Air Force would "build geothermal energy power plants at every Air Force installation if we could."
That brings up the exciting possibility for GGS to provide resilient and clean energy in every Air Force base.
It's worth noting that Sage Geosystems also sees "enormous potential" for GGS in the civilian sector to overcome "intermittency challenges" that plague competing green energy like solar and wind. The press release specifically identifies urban areas as an opportunity, noting that the tech requires minimal land use.
Air Force civil engineer Lt. Col. Christian Campbell thinks this could be the start of something big between GGS.
"We feel this is the launch pad of helping not only the DoD but many other applications throughout global markets," he said in the Sage press release.
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