Geothermal energy in Lebanon

Geothermal energy in Lebanon is a branch of the energy industry, expanding quickly over the last several years. According to a UNDP assessment (CEDRO project), the geothermal energy theoretically available in Lebanon is 10⁹ GWh or 70,000 the amount of energy needed in Lebanon per year although the technologies at the time of study allow for the extraction of only 10% of that amount, i.e. 10⁸ GWh or 7,000 times the yearly energy demand of Lebanon. Additionally, the study concludes that for reasons regarding the safety of EGS technologies, only hydrothermal techniques could be appropriate for Lebanon. These techniques theoretically allow for the extraction of only 1.2 . 10⁵ GWh. The CEDRO project proposes "an optimistic but realistic scenario" for the implementation of this technology that would allow for the production of 0.2% of the total energy demand for 2025 via geothermal means. The study includes a geothermal atlas for the country and estimates the current overall potential of geothermal heat and power generation.^[1]