Geo POWER Act
Sponsored By: Representative Begich, Nicholas J. [R-AK-At Large]
Introduced
Summary
This bill would create a federal, milestone-based financing program to accelerate commercial geothermal in hard-to-reach reservoirs and new U.S. regions. It focuses on lowering upfront exploration and drilling risk, generating public data to de-risk future projects, and using staged payments tied to technical and financial milestones to attract private investment.
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- Geothermal developers and private investors: The program would offer innovative, milestone-based financing to help cover high upfront costs and to attract significant private sector investment to projects that show progress.
- Communities and tribal lands: Projects in regions with little or no existing geothermal generation, including areas near Indian land, would be prioritized to expand geographic access to geothermal power.
- Project scale and future projects: Awards must support new facilities or advances that enable at least 30 megawatts of commercial-scale generation per project or in aggregate.
- Department of Energy and program design: The Department of Energy would run competitive solicitations and must fund at least three distinct proposals across at least three states and to at least three different sponsors, plus staff the program to administer financing.
*Authorizes appropriations as necessary to carry out the milestone-based demonstration program and related activities.*
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Federal geothermal financing program
If enacted, this bill would require the Energy Department to start a Milestone‑Based Geothermal Demonstration Program within 180 days. The program would provide innovative, milestone-based financing for geothermal projects in low‑permeability or impermeable reservoirs. It would prioritize places with little or no geothermal power, including projects on or near Indian land, and projects that collect and share data to de-risk future projects. Awards would target new facilities or projects that enable at least 30 megawatts of aggregate commercial capacity and projects likely to attract private investment. The Department would have to fund at least three different proposals in at least three States from at least three different sponsors, keep enough staff to run the financing, and carry out projects as milestone demonstrations under the Energy Act of 2020. The bill would authorize such sums as are necessary and would remove a prior paragraph (3) in subsection (d) of Section 615.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Begich, Nicholas J. [R-AK-At Large]
AK • R
Cosponsors
Rep. Lee, Susie [D-NV-3]
NV • D
Sponsored 4/22/2026
Rep. Kim, Young [R-CA-40]
CA • R
Sponsored 4/30/2026
Maloy
UT • R
Sponsored 5/13/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov