BGS has released the first digital version of the UK legacy geothermal catalogue of subsurface temperature measurements, rock thermal conductivity measurements and heat flow calculations.

Distribution of sites in the first digital release of the legacy geothermal catalogue. UK legacy geothermal catalogue released in digital format for the first time.

Detailed subsurface information is required to increase the uptake of geothermal energy technologies. This will contribute to UK net zero targets through decarbonisation of heat, along with energy security. The legacy UK geothermal catalogue is a significant compilation of data to inform geothermal assessments.

The legacy geothermal catalogue comprises data contained in numerous historic technical reports from the 1977 to 1991 Geothermal Energy Programme. This was delivered by BGS and funded by the then UK Department of Energy and the European Commission.

The digital release contains 11 821 data points derived from 743 sites, comprising 77 per cent of the legacy geothermal catalogue dataset held by BGS. Alongside this, five of the original programme reports have been released onto the NERC Open Research Archive. Future releases of the legacy data are planned, for which the intellectual property rights (IPR) and validation checks are more complex.

Dr Alison Monaghan, BGS Head of Geothermal, commented:
This open release of the legacy geothermal catalogue makes a significant dataset more accessible, to support the development of geothermal energy and heat decarbonisation onshore UK. It may be used to inform pre-feasibility stages of projects or for research and innovation. The user guide describes acknowledged limitations of this first release of a legacy dataset. The aim is for future releases to include more recent data.

This data is released under the Open Government Licence 3.0 and is a step towards Recommendation 3, improving data availability and accessibility, of the 2023 Deep Geothermal White Paper.

The data release comprises of a series of csv files and an accompanying user guide that can be accessed for use under the Open Government Licence.

KeyFacts Energy: Geothermal news   l   KeyFacts Energy Industry Directory: British Geological Survey