Shortly after the successful completion of a grid-connected geothermal power plant in Nevada, Fervo Energy is raising $221 million, according to SEC filings exclusively obtained by TechCrunch.
The Houston-based company is one of several stepped-up geothermal startups racing to harness the heat deep in the Earth's crust. Previous geothermal power plants only scratched the surface by accessing hot springs or shallow rock formations.
Fervo uses directional drilling techniques pioneered by the oil and gas industry to extend wells far beyond their surface footprint. Not surprisingly, the company's management team includes veterans in the field.
Once these wells are drilled, Fervo runs fiber-optic cables connected to a series of sensors through the wells. These sensors transmit data to teams on the surface, who use that data to map subsurface thermal patterns and monitor the performance of each well.
The startup has had a string of recent successes. Earlier this month, the company reported completing a horizontal well at its Utah project in 21 days, which is 70% faster than the first well the company drilled in 2022 and cut costs in half. It was done. At $21 million per well, it's still not cheap, but the rate of progress is exceeding the Department of Energy's expectations, Furbo said.
Also this month, the company received a $25 million grant from the Department of Energy. The company last raised a $138 million Series C in July 2022 at a valuation of $308 million, according to PitchBook data. Previous investors include BHP Ventures, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Congruent Ventures, DCVC and Prelude Ventures. Early angel investors include Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, Bill Gates, and Masayoshi Son.
In November, Fervo connected its 3.5-megawatt Project Red power plant to the Nevada power grid, the first of its kind. Electrons from the facility power Google's data centers across the state, providing 24/7 power supply that does not require batteries, unlike many other renewable energy sources. supply.
According to the Department of Energy, geothermal energy could provide up to 90 gigawatts of electricity per year in the United States by 2050. Proponents tout the technology not only as a way to add carbon-free power to the grid, but also as a way to hire oil and gas workers as oil demand dwindles.
Furbo did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.
Given the high cost of geothermal drilling and the need to handle harder rock than oil and gas drilling rigs, Furbo will use the new revenue to continue drilling more wells and increase speed. potential for improvement and cost reduction.