Govt (Japan) to financially support geothermal generation

Japan's Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry says it will support companies that invest in geothermal power generation projects.

Geothermal generation uses high-temperature steam produced by underground water heated by volcanic activity. The ministry predicts that geothermal generation will be a key source of renewable energy in Japan, which has many volcanoes.

A semi-governmental body will offer grants or investment money to firms looking for suitable sites.

Companies need to raise huge amounts of money for the initial stages of these projects. Drilling a well for underground steam is said to cost 5 to 10 billion yen, or 65 million to 130 million dollars. The ministry also plans to guarantee firms' debt to help them obtain loans for the projects from financial institutions.


http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/25_20.html

And doesn't take up huge areas of scarce land.

But it's also not as mature a technology... and there's some fear that it contributes to earthquakes.

It would be a sad irony if an earthquake killed tens of thousands of people and sparked a nuclear event that killed - well... somewhere between zero and a couple hundred people - only to have the nuclear event scare the people into over-accelerated use of a technology that ends up sparking the next earthquake that kills thousands of people.