Superhot Rock Geothermal in Cameroon

The document highlights that just 1% of Cameroon's estimated superhot rock geothermal resource could provide 427 GW of energy capacity, far exceeding the country's 2021 electricity consumption of 7,937 GWh. While unlikely to meet 2030 climate goals, this technology could theoretically replace all coal and gas in the electricity sector, reducing emissions by approximately 2 megatonnes of CO2eq. The report emphasizes the technology's low land footprint (12 km² per 1 GW) and its potential to address energy poverty, as over 35% of Cameroon's population currently lacks electricity access.

• Preliminary modeling indicates that Cameroon possesses significant superhot rock resources; specifically, 1% of this resource could provide 427 GW of energy capacity, generating over 3,555,151 GWh of electricity.
• The potential energy from 1% of Cameroon's superhot rock endowment is equivalent to 2 billion barrels of oil or 448 times the country's electricity consumption in 2021, which was 7,937 GWh.
• Superhot rock geothermal is characterized by high energy density and low land requirements, needing approximately 12 km² to produce 1 GW, significantly less than natural gas (160 km²), solar (180 km²), offshore wind (520 km²), or biomass (14,000 km²).
• The technology could support Cameroon's National Development Strategy 2020-2030, which targets an additional 3,500 MW of electricity by 2035 and 1 million new connections, helping to address the fact that over 35% of the population lacks electricity access.

APA

Clean Air Task Force (n.d.). Superhot Rock Geothermal in Cameroon. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/22144622/Cameroon-SHR-Regional-Assessment.pdf

Chicago

Clean Air Task Force. Superhot Rock Geothermal in Cameroon. n.d. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/22144622/Cameroon-SHR-Regional-Assessment.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Clean Air Task Force |title=Superhot Rock Geothermal in Cameroon |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/22144622/Cameroon-SHR-Regional-Assessment.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cleanairtaskforcendsuperhot, author = {{Clean Air Task Force}}, title = {{Superhot Rock Geothermal in Cameroon}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/22144622/Cameroon-SHR-Regional-Assessment.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }