A geothermal project under construction in central Oregon is aiming to generate more than 50 megawatts of electricity by 2030 by tapping heat far below the Earth’s surface.

Its developer, Quaise Energy, says Project Obsidian could become the world’s first commercial superhot geothermal power plant.

The company announced that the US Department of Energy has selected the project for up to $25 million in funding. The proposed contract would help Quaise study its first two wells and use the results to plan a third.

Project Obsidian is being built south of Bend on a geothermal resource that Quaise says has been extensively studied. A confirmation well is currently being drilled at the site.

The initial three-well configuration is designed to demonstrate more than 25 MW of gross electric capacity, with average reservoir temperatures exceeding 572°F.

That figure describes the planned test. Quaise separately expects the project’s first phase to produce more than 50 MW by 2030, when it aims to deliver its first power to the Pacific Northwest grid.

The DOE support would fund analysis of drilling, stimulation and flow results from the first two wells. Quaise plans to use those findings to optimize the third well and guide later drilling at the site.

“This DOE support is a recognition of what we are building at Quaise and the progress we are making in the field, including the confirmation well currently being drilled at Project Obsidian,” said Carlos Araque, CEO and President of Quaise Energy.

“Our ambition has always been to make superhot geothermal a commercial reality, and Project Obsidian is where we first deliver on that promise,” he added .

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