By Our Editorial Staff
From Marie Curie to Geotermix, for a 2023 of science and research on the warm heart of Tuscany.
The last scientific event of the year was Geothermix, an international conference with Italian and foreign PhD students and researchers. The initiative, carried out at the Department of Earth Sciences of the University of Pisa and in Larderello, also saw Enel Green Power’s Director of Geothermal Energy Italy, Luca Rossini, deliver a drilling core from the hottest point measured in the European continental crust in Tuscany, to the Director of the Department Luca Pandolfi.
Geothermal energy is increasingly international, at the centre of academic and scientific research, in dialogue with important Italian and foreign universities, as well as the subject of wide-ranging journalistic reports and projects: in 2023, in fact, there were many realities of this type that visited the geothermal lands of Tuscany, from the traditional area of Larderello and the metalliferous hills to the Amiata and the Sienese area of Val di Merse. Over the course of the year, numerous universities, courses of study and research institutions in the geothermal sector, from the University of Pisa to Padua, from Urbino to Rome, from Florence to Geneva via Bologna, have made in-depth studies and visits to geothermal Tuscany, not to mention the journalistic reports of international newspapers, some projects in progress on personalities such as Marie Curie or even sustainable tourism initiatives – from the Giro del Fuoco to Geogravel Tuscany – linked to the slow enjoyment of the territory between gravel, trekking and geothermal food and wine, up to the conferences, starting with the “Homage to the de Larderel Dynasty”, and the involvement of geothermal energy in the prestigious exhibition by photographer Luca Locatelli “The Circle”, which can be visited at the Gallerie d’Italia in Turin until 18 February 2024, a journey through original and evocative images and videos through Europe to discover the new paradigm of development from an economic perspective circular and sustainability.
The last event, which closes the scientific 2023 of geothermal energy, was GeothermiX, the international conference held at the Department of Earth Sciences of the University of Pisa directed by Prof. Luca Pandolfi, with a final visit to Larderello, and organized by the PhD students of the PhD course in Geosciences and Environment thanks to the funds made available annually by the University of Pisa, in collaboration with Unione Geotermica Italiana, INGV, Società Geochimica Italiana, Arpat and the support of Enel Green Power. Over 100 participants attended three days of seminars and in-depth studies, held by Italian and foreign doctoral students, and visits that represented an opportunity for young researchers to meet and dialogue, all enriched by the presence of national and international professors and researchers in the field of geosciences. The conference, divided into five different sessions on geological, environmental and educational fields, dealt with geothermal energy from all points of view: in particular, the themes of structural geology, geophysical and geochemical methods used in geothermal prospecting were explored, as well as topics more related to the issues of environmental sustainability of the resource and education. The visit to Larderello, curated for Enel Green Power by Geoffrey Giudetti, Head of Geothermal Resource Evaluation, and Romina Taccone, Head of Technical Support for Geothermal Energy Italy, allowed participants to take a journey to discover the history of geothermal energy with a visit to the Museum, guided by Enel Green Power museum representative Giorgio Simoni, up to the relevance of this resource, which combines technological excellence and environmental sustainability, through the stages at the demonstration well and the ‘Valle Secolo’ power plant, which with its 120 MW (two groups of 60 MW) of installed power constitutes one of the largest geothermal plants in Europe. Useful stages and comparisons, which made it possible to dwell on all the technical and sustainable aspects of the production of electricity thanks to the steam contained in the heart of the earth. Also of interest are the aspects relating to the so-called multiple uses, from agricultural to cultural and tourist activities with economic and environmental benefits for the entire territory in which Enel Green Power’s plants are located. In Tuscany, Enel Green Power operates the oldest and most innovative geothermal complex in the world, which has 34 geothermal power plants, for a total of 37 production units, located in the provinces of Pisa, Siena and Grosseto. The almost 6 billion KWh produced annually in Tuscany, in addition to satisfying more than 33% of the region’s electricity needs, provide heat useful for heating over 13 thousand users, almost 30 hectares of greenhouses and companies in the agri-food, floriculture and craft supply chain. Geothermal energy is also of great value from a cultural, historical and tourist point of view with 60 thousand visits a year, through new itineraries in the warm heart of a lesser-known but very evocative Tuscany, immersed in natural manifestations such as geysers, putizze and fumaroles that are integrated with the production plants, the geothermal visit and trekking routes and the museums of the area.
