China Launches National Pilot Scheme for High-quality Geothermal Energy Development in 15th Five-Year Plan Period

Per China Economic Network dispatches, a formal circular issued by the General Department of the National Energy Administration sets out detailed arrangements for nationwide pilot projects advancing high-quality geothermal exploitation and utilisation throughout the 15th Five-Year Plan cycle. The policy document establishes clear targets for regional regulatory frameworks, large-scale geothermal facilities and replicable technical and operational models covering shallow and medium-deep geothermal resources.

Geothermal power stands as a low-carbon, stable renewable resource that accelerates national energy transition and delivers carbon reduction gains across heating sectors, while opening new industrial tracks for clean energy growth. Cumulative investment and technical iteration over recent decades have steadily expanded domestic geothermal deployment capacity. Official statistics confirm the total national floor area served by geothermal heating and cooling systems reached roughly 1.65 billion square metres by the close of 2025. Medium-deep geothermal heating accounts for 720 million square metres of this total, with shallow geothermal heating and cooling covering the remaining 930 million square metres.

The circular lays out targeted development pathways for medium-deep geothermal reserves. Authorities encourage scaled development to lift geothermal’s share within municipal district heating networks, alongside hybrid commercial frameworks that integrate geothermal infrastructure with conventional heat supply assets. Geothermal systems receive priority rollout to replace natural gas heating installations across urban zones. Long-distance heat transmission schemes drawing on medium-deep geothermal reserves will secure viable commercial structures to resolve spatial mismatches between subsurface heat resources and concentrated end-user heating demand. Underground heat exchange technology that extracts thermal energy without extracting groundwater receives streamlined administrative clearance procedures to speed up project construction timelines.

Separate guidance applies to shallow geothermal assets. Local authorities will trial innovative technical blueprints and investment operation frameworks, replacing fossil fuel heating including natural gas with shallow geothermal systems across rural residential zones. Clustered geothermal facilities will be constructed within urban built-up areas, with streamlined construction governance and coordinated use of public green spaces outside building red lines to cut land acquisition overheads.

Diversified multi-scenario utilisation sits at the core of all pilot deployment plans. Research and industrial incubation for geothermal power generation receive sustained policy backing. Industrial manufacturing sites will adopt geothermal heating and process heat supply to lower factory carbon footprints. Disused oil and gas boreholes undergo technical conversion into geothermal extraction wells to deliver full-cycle resource reuse. Tiered exploitation models combine geothermal heat provision with extraction of strategic minerals such as lithium, helium and boron within mineral-rich geothermal fields. Existing ageing geothermal heating installations receive systematic equipment upgrades to boost operational efficiency and integrate intelligent monitoring control systems.

Industry research materials released by Western Securities quantify China’s untapped geothermal reserves at 857.25 trillion tonnes of standard coal equivalent, against annual national geothermal consumption of just 40.19 million tonnes of standard coal equivalent. Continuous technical breakthroughs unlock broader commercial application scenarios for geothermal assets across residential, industrial and power generation segments.

Provincial energy administrations and municipal industry regulators begin compiling local pilot implementation roadmaps to align regional geothermal resource endowments with heating, manufacturing and power generation demand. Specialised technical research institutions partner with industrial operators to standardise geothermal well drilling, heat exchange and long-distance heat transmission specifications. Market financing mechanisms tailored for geothermal projects will expand to attract social capital into medium-deep and shallow geothermal pilot construction throughout the 15th Five-Year Plan period.