Dr. Kristie McLin Discusses the Future of Utah FORGE on Stream-Flo Podcast

Dr. Kristie McLin, Principal Investigator of Utah FORGE, recently joined the Stream-Flo of Consciousness podcast for a wide-ranging conversation about enhanced geothermal systems, technology development, industry collaboration, and the future of Utah FORGE.

Recorded at the World Geothermal Congress, the interview explores how enhanced geothermal systems differ from conventional geothermal resources, how Utah FORGE helps move emerging technologies toward commercial use, and where geothermal research may go next.

“We Make the Reservoir”

In conventional hydrothermal systems, naturally occurring fractures allow water to move through hot rock, absorb heat, and carry that heat toward the surface. Enhanced geothermal systems, or EGS, are designed for places where those natural conditions do not exist.

As McLin explains in the interview, “we make the reservoir.” Researchers create permeability in hot rock, inject water, and circulate it through the subsurface to extract heat.

Utah FORGE was established as a dedicated field-scale test site for advancing these technologies under real-world conditions. Since the project was awarded to Utah in 2018, wells have been drilled, stimulated, and circulated as researchers work to advance EGS technology.

A Test Bed for Geothermal Technology

McLin describes Utah FORGE as a test bed for technologies that can help move geothermal research toward commercialization. Her vision includes testing new technologies at greater depths and higher temperatures and preparing successful approaches for adoption by industry.

That transfer from research to industry is already taking place. During the interview, McLin points to Fervo Energy’s nearby Cape Station project, which has used data generated during the assessment and characterization of the Utah FORGE site, as well as approaches related to drilling and fracturing.

Utah FORGE can also provide a setting for testing technologies that may still carry too much technical or financial risk for commercial operators to pilot on their own. The goal is not simply to demonstrate that a technology works, but to help reduce risk, improve performance, and create a pathway toward industry use.

Collaboration Is “the Magic of Utah FORGE”

A major theme throughout the conversation is collaboration. Utah FORGE works with universities, companies, scientists, engineers, and technology providers to develop new tools, test new approaches, and improve understanding of enhanced geothermal systems.

McLin highlights circulation testing conducted in collaboration with Texas Tech University and California State University Long Beach. Results from that work have helped inform model updates used to better understand and predict changes during future circulation testing.

According to McLin, the ability to directly connect with a broad community of scientists and engineers across academia and industry has been “the magic of Utah FORGE.”

Looking to the Next Phase

The conversation also looks ahead to the next phase of research at Utah FORGE. McLin discusses extended circulation testing, plans for another well, different well configurations and completion approaches, and the use of fiber optic sensing to monitor injection and production.

Researchers are also examining ways to reduce water losses in the subsurface, an issue with both economic and sustainability implications for enhanced geothermal systems, particularly in water-scarce regions of the western United States.

Further into the future, McLin sees opportunities to test geothermal technologies at deeper and hotter conditions. The data generated at Utah FORGE, she explains, can support multiple approaches to geothermal development as the industry works to match the right technologies with the right locations.

“We need to all work together to realize the dream of geothermal everywhere.”

— Dr. Kristie McLin

Watch the full interview to hear more about Utah FORGE, emerging geothermal technologies, industry collaboration, and McLin’s vision for the future of geothermal research.

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