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

This report by RMI argues that the United States is well-positioned to lead the next-generation geothermal supply chain by leveraging existing oil and gas expertise, but warns that targeted policy and research are required to avoid bottlenecks and capture economic benefits.

• Investment in next-generation geothermal energy has seen massive growth, increasing from $22 million in 2018 to $2.2 billion in 2025. A significant milestone includes a 500 MW commercial plant in Utah scheduled 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. However, gaps exist as developers move toward superhot rock (SHR), where standard drill rigs and components degrade, and certain critical components like organic Rankine cycle (ORC) turbines and steam turbines are primarily manufactured abroad.
• Developing a domestic supply chain could create over 100,000 jobs in the operation and development of surface plants and wellfields. Manufacturing jobs in geothermal are estimated to be twice the proportion of manufacturing jobs found in solar energy, based on IEA estimates that roughly 25% of conventional geothermal jobs are in equipment manufacturing.
• Economic opportunities for the geothermal supply chain are distributed across various US regions: oil and gas machinery expertise is concentrated in Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma, while turbine and generator manufacturing is centered in Georgia, New York, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
• To secure the supply chain, the report suggests expanding the 45X advanced manufacturing production tax credit to geothermal and utilizing the 48E electricity investment credit and 45Y electricity production credit. It also calls for the Department of Energy (DOE) and national labs to provide better data on equipment inventories, production costs, and lead times.

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} }