Potential for substitution of geothermal energy at domestic defense installations and White Sands Missile Range

Geothermal resources that might provide substitute energy at any of 76 defense installations are identified and evaluated. The geologic characteristics and related economics of potential geothermal resources located at or near the 76 installations were estimated. The geologic assessment identified 18 installations with possible geothermal resources and 4 Atlantic Coastal Plain resource configurations that represented the alternatives available to East Coast bases. These 18 locations and 4 resource configurations, together with 2 possible resources at the White Sands Missile Range and a potential resource at Kings Bay, Georgia, were examined to determine the relative economics of substituting potential geothermal energy for part or all of the existing oil, gas, and electrical energy usage. Four of the military installations - Mountain Home, Norton, Hawthorne, and Sierra - appear to be co-located with possible geothermal resources which, if present, might provide substitute energy at or below current market prices for oil. Six additional locations - Ellsworth, Luke, Williams, Bliss, Fallon, and Twentynine Palms - could become economically attractive under certain conditions. No geothermal resource was found to be economically competitive with natural gas at current controlled prices. Generation of electric power at the locations studied is estimated to be uneconomic at present.