Fourth Periodic Report

The project’s overall objective is to promote the utilization of geothermal energy and resources as a reliable renewable energy resource through demonstration actions in three cities involved in the project as CONCERTO Areas. Geothermal energy is the least known and least expanded RES in Europe, though its relevance and importance should deserve much more attention. By using the practically unlimited internal heat of earth, geothermal energy has one of the highest potential of all RES. When compared with other RES – like solar or wind – its main advantage is the practically constant energy and heat output it can provide. Besides the well known geothermal regions like Iceland or the region of Tuscany (Larderello) in Italy, Central-Eastern European countries have exceptional geothermal resources. These resources are either unexploited due to the lack of technological know-how or their use is carried out in an unsustainable way; geothermal district heating projects lack the energy efficiency component and the used thermal water is generally not re-injected but instead released to surface waters.

The Geothermal Communities project, joint action of 16 individual partners, demonstrates the best available technologies for the use of geothermal energy combined with innovative energy efficiency measures and with the integration of other renewable energy sources in three different pilot sites (Hungary, Slovakia and Italy). Furthermore, the project integrates a large number of cities as project partners (from Serbia, Romania, Poland and Macedonia) that either already have ongoing geothermal initiatives and are keen on adopting the latest technologies (e.g. Oras Sacueni, Romania) or they would like to realise brand new systems by taking advantage of the project’s results and its competent consortium (e.g. Subotica, Serbia).