Mexico Releases Report on the Future of Geothermal

On June 12, 2025, New Mexico released a report on The Future of Geothermal in New Mexico The report was published by Project InnerSpace in collaboration with New Mexico Tech and the New Mexico Bureau of Geology & Mineral Resources. The report found that due to a combination of abundant subsurface heat, technical expertise from the oil and gas and geothermal industries, and support from political leaders, the state is well positioned to accelerate deployment of geothermal. Specifically, the state has the potential to produce 163 gigawatts of geothermal power which would be more than 15 times the state's 2023 installed capacity. Policy recommendations to help the state move projects forward include:

• Creating clear pathways and legal and regulatory certainty for industry (i.e., clarifying heat ownership and streamlining legal definitions of geothermal);
• Creating the conditions that will accelerate geothermal production in New Mexico (i.e., setting a regulatory goal of 5 gigawatts of geothermal energy on the grid by 2035);
• Expanding state geothermal incentives (i.e., expanding the grant and revolving fund to include commercial and private sector projects on state lands);
• Catalyzing the development of geothermal heating and cooling (i.e., allowing utilities to build, own, and operate Thermal Energy Networks); and
• Expanding educational programs for energy workers and the public (i.e., geothermal specific apprenticeships and workforce trainings).

The final report can be found here.