The Geothermal Supply Chain Is America’s to Gain — or Lose

The United States is well-positioned to lead the next-generation geothermal supply chain due to significant overlaps with the oil and gas industry, though gaps remain in superhot rock (SHR) compatible rigs and power conversion turbomachinery. While investment in the sector grew from $22 million in 2018 to $2.2 billion in 2025, the report warns that equipment supply chains could become a bottleneck for national-scale adoption. Developing a domestic supply chain could create over 100,000 jobs in wellfield and plant operations and catalyze manufacturing growth in regions like Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Georgia, New York, North Carolina, and South Carolina. To secure this advantage, the report recommends expanding the 45X advanced manufacturing production tax credit to geothermal and improving data on equipment capacity and production costs.

• Investment in next-generation geothermal energy has seen massive growth, increasing from $22 million in 2018 to $2.2 billion in 2025, with a 500 MW commercial plant in Utah expected to come online this year.
• The United States has a strategic advantage because oil and gas expertise is relevant to over 75% of next-generation geothermal investment, allowing developers to repurpose existing capabilities for drill rigs, bits, and casings.
• Critical supply chain gaps exist for high-temperature applications and power conversion; superhot rock (SHR) compatible rigs are rare, and organic Rankine cycle (ORC) and steam turbines are primarily manufactured abroad.
• Establishing a domestic supply chain could create over 100,000 jobs in operations and development, with manufacturing potential concentrated in specific regional clusters: oil and gas machinery in Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma, and turbine/generator manufacturing in Georgia, New York, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
• To avoid supply chain bottlenecks, the report suggests expanding the 45X advanced manufacturing production tax credit to geothermal and calls for the Department of Energy (DOE) and national labs to provide better data on equipment capacity and production costs.

APA

RMI (2026). The Geothermal Supply Chain Is America’s to Gain — or Lose. https://rmi.org/resources/the-geothermal-supply-chain-is-americas-to-gain-or-lose/

Chicago

RMI. The Geothermal Supply Chain Is America’s to Gain — or Lose. 2026. https://rmi.org/resources/the-geothermal-supply-chain-is-americas-to-gain-or-lose/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=The Geothermal Supply Chain Is America’s to Gain — or Lose |date=7 May 2026 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/the-geothermal-supply-chain-is-americas-to-gain-or-lose/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2026geothermal, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{The Geothermal Supply Chain Is America’s to Gain — or Lose}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2026}, month = may, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/the-geothermal-supply-chain-is-americas-to-gain-or-lose/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }