ZGEO Energy and the Colorado Energy Office Co-Host the Southwest Colorado Geothermal Summit in Montrose
On June 4, 2024, ZGEO Energy, in collaboration with the Geothermal Division of the Colorado Energy Office and numerous geothermal experts, hosted the Southwest Colorado Geothermal Summit in Montrose. This event, which included a geothermal technical workshop and panel discussions, was a significant step towards the integration of geothermal energy into local planning. It was attended by regional utilities, ten different local municipalities and county governments, industry stakeholders, all of whom were inspired by the potential of high-temperature and low-temperature geothermal technologies.
The speaker lineup included Bryce Carter, Emerging Markets Program Manager for the Colorado Energy Office; Wendy Fenner, President of ZGEO Energy, Kent Marsh, Vice President of Capital Planning, Sustainability & Campus Operations, Colorado Mesa University; Paul Bony, Energy Services Professional with The Grey Edge Group, Teal Stetson-Lee, Rico Geothermal Coalition, Paul Scharfenberger, CEO of Colorado Clean Energy Fund, Dr. Alfred Lacazette, PhD, Director of Geology for Geothermal Technologies, Inc (GTI), Scott H. Nichols Manager of Regulatory Affairs for Ormat Technologies, Peter Bauman, Exploration & Land Manager for Eavor Technologies, John Morgan, Lead Geothermal Scientist for the Colorado Energy & Carbon Management Commission, Travis Sondrol Craig Plant Manager and Reg Rudolf Energy Innovations Officer, both with Tri-State Generation & Transmission.
The technical workshop and public information session were met with enthusiasm and approximately 170 people in attendance. This positive response was further validated the following week when citizens provided public comments requesting that Montrose County Planning add geothermal energy to the renewable energy components of its 2024 Master Plan Update, which was formally adopted in September 2024.
