Geotermia

Proceedings World Geothermal Congress 2010
Bali, Indonesia, 25-29 April 2010
1
Geothermal Development in Iceland 2005-2009
Árni Ragnarsson
Iceland GeoSurvey (ÍSOR), Grensásvegur 9, 108Reykjavík, Iceland
arni.ragnarsson@isor.is
Keywords: Iceland, geothermal energy, district heating,
direct use, power generation
ABSTRACT
Due to it´s location Iceland has very favourable conditions
forgeothermal development. The geothermal resources are
utilized both for electricity generation and direct heat
application. The share of geothermal energy in the nation´s
primary energy supply is 62%.Space heating is the most
important direct utilization of geothermal energy in Iceland,
covering 89% of all houses in the country. Other sectors of
direct use are swimming pools, snow melting,industry,
greenhouses and fish farming. The total direct use of
geothermal energy was estimated to be 26,280 TJ (7,300
GWh) in 2009. Generation of electricity by geothermal
energy has increasedrapidly during the past few years,
mainly due to increased demand in the energy intensive
industry. The total installed capacity is now 573 MWe and
the annual generation in 2009 was 4,400 GWh, which isabout 26% of the total produced in the country.
1. INTRODUCTION
The location on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge places Iceland in
the group of countries that have huge geothermal potential.
The country ismountainous and volcanic, with much
precipitation, making the hydropower resources abundant.
The population of Iceland is about 320,000, of which
almost two third live in the capital area. Duringthe course
of the 20th century, Iceland went from what was one of
Europe’s poorest countries, dependent upon peat and
imported coal for its energy, to a country with a high
standard of living wherepractically all stationary energy,
and roughly 82% of the primary energy comes from
indigenous renewable sources (62% geothermal, 20%
hydropower). The rest of Iceland´s energy sources come...