Piloting Underground Storage of Heat In geoThermal reservoirs

PUSH-IT will showcase full-scale application of high temperature heat storage (up to 90°C) in geothermal reservoirs using 3 different technologies at 6 different sites. The 3 technologies addressed in PUSH-IT are relevant for different reservoir types, which are available everywhere in Europe. In PUSH-IT we will develop, deploy and test our technologies for a variety of configurations of heat sources, heat storage technologies, geological conditions, distribution systems, stakeholder populations and market and legal conditions. Hence, PUSH-IT provides a unique scope on demonstration, integration and advances for seasonal heat storage that are relevant across Europe. These results will enhance the utilisation of sustainable energy and create a balanced system for sharing benefits and burdens tied to sustainable heat generation, storage and distribution activities.

We will reduce environmental impact, levelised cost of energy and risks and improve performance and robustness via development and demonstration of several enabling technologies, i.e., newly developed monitoring and water quality control and novel drilling and completion and novel control systems. Societal engagement is a key element and achieved via citizen engagement, analysing motivations and perceptions of heat storage, and investigating governance policies and business models that engage citizens in decision making regarding urban heating systems including storage.

The PUSH-IT consortium combines heat suppliers, well drillers, public planning offices and academic partners. These cover all required technical and societal know-how and background for heat systems. We will realise operational projects and use these to generate generic solutions and practices relevant across Europe. All activities will be monitored and reported, yielding a valuable comprehensive dataset on the technical and social real-world performance.