Proceedings World Geothermal Congress 2020+1 - HEATSTORE Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES) - State of the Art, Example Cases and Lessons Learned

Oct 29, 2026

Compilation of operational experience and key lessons learned under the EU GEOTHERMICA–ERA NET Cofund project HEATSTORE focuses on high-temperature underground thermal energy storage technologies. The work integrates know-how from existing High-Temperature Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage (HT-ATES), Borehole Thermal Energy Storage (BTES) and Pit Thermal Energy Storage (PTES) with the current technology state of Mine Thermal Energy Storage (MTES). Literature study and partner expertise describe relevant cases in and outside Europe, summarizing learnings across preinvestigation, feasibility, construction, system integration, operations, and regulatory, political, and public aspects.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

AccessFree to download

1. Introduction

2. The UTES Technologies in HEATSTORE

2.1 HT-ATES

2.2 BTES

Proceedings World Geothermal Congress 2020+1 Reykjavik, Iceland, April-October 2021 HEATSTORE – Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES)– State ofthe Art, Example Cases and Lessons Learned Anders J. Kallesøe 1, Thomas Vangkilde-Pedersen1, Jan E. Nielsen2, Guido Bakema3, Patrick Egermann4, Charles Maragna5, Florian Hahn6, Luca Guglielmetti7 and Joris Koornneef8 1 GEUS, 2 PlanEnergi, 3 IF Technology, 4 Storengy, 5 BRGM, 6 GZB, 7 UniGe, 8 TNO Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, GEUS, C.F. Møllers Allé 8, Bygn. 1110 DK-8000 Aarhus C [ajk@geus.dk](ajk@geus.dk) Keywords: Heat storage, energy storage, HT-ATES, HT-BTES, PTES, MTES ABSTRACT As part of the EU GEOTHERMICA–ERA NET Cofund project HEATSTORE, important lessons learned and operational experience from existing High-Temperature Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage (HT-ATES), Borehole Thermal Energy Storage (BTES) and Pit Thermal Energy Storage (PTES) have been compiled together with Mine Thermal Energy Storage (MTES) current state of technology. Through a literature study and based on actual experience and know-how among the HEATSTORE project partners, relevant cases in, and outside, Europe have been described. Essential learnings covering the entire process from the first preinvestigation phase and feasibility studies through the construction phase, system integration and operations as well as different national legislative, political and public issues are summarized. 1. INTRODUCTION Throughout the world, we are beginning to experience more extreme weather conditions with cloudbursts and storms, floods, drought and forest fires, believed to be associated with climate change and increasing global temperature. As a response, the majority of the global community has agreed in the Paris Agreement to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C. According to the IPCC, this will require a 45% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 2010 and zero emissions by 2050 and in the necessary transition to fluctuating renewable energy sources, energy storage will be essential to balance the match between demand and availability. In Europe, half of the total energy consumption is for heating and cooling and around 85% of this energy is produced from fossil fuels, and Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES) has the potential to play an essential role in the implementation of e.g. geothermal, waste heat, wind and solar as alternative energy sources in the district heating sector. However, UTES technologies need to be further developed and to become an integral component in the future district heating infrastructure in order to meet the expected variations in both availability and demand of heat. Therefore, the EU Geothermica HEATSTORE project aim to pave the way for commercial implementation of the technology through de-risking, cost reduction and optimization. This will be achieved by conducting 6 new high temperature (~ 25°C to ~ 90°C) underground heat storage demonstration pilots and 8 case studies of existing heat storage systems with distinct configurations of heat sources, heat storage and heat utilization. One of the first activities in the HEATSTORE project has been to compile important lessons learned from existing UTES systems. The experience from the different project phases will be presented here, starting with pre-investigation and feasibility studies followed by the construction phase, system integration and the system operation stage. These lessons learned will now feed into the demonstration sites in HEATSTORE in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland and Germany, where pilot projects are established. The HEATSTORE project is carried out by 23 partners in 9 countries. 2. THE UTES TECHNOLOGIES IN HEATSTORE The HEATSTORE project comprises four different UTES systems: 􀁸 High Temperature Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage (HT-ATES) 􀁸 Borehole Thermal Energy Storage (BTES) 􀁸 Pit Thermal Energy Storage (PTES)

FAQs

What technologies are covered in the HEATSTORE underground thermal energy storage overview?

The document covers High-Temperature Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage (HT-ATES), Borehole Thermal Energy Storage (BTES), Pit Thermal Energy Storage (PTES), and Mine Thermal Energy Storage (MTES). It compiles lessons learned from existing systems and includes MTES current state of technology.

Which project phases are emphasized in the lessons learned?

Lessons learned span the process from first preinvestigation and feasibility studies through construction, system integration, and system operation. The document also connects these learnings to demonstration sites across multiple European countries.

Why is Underground Thermal Energy Storage considered important in the context of climate and energy transition?

The document links increasing extreme weather and climate change to the need for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It argues that energy storage is essential to balance demand and availability when transitioning to fluctuating renewable energy sources, especially for heating and cooling needs.

Oct 29, 2026

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