Investors need a reliable framework

29.09.2025

Source: E & M powernews

In the future, geothermal energy could cover a quarter of Germany's heating and cooling requirements, says Herbert Pohl. But the framework conditions need to improve.

Herbert Pohl believes that the Geothermal Acceleration Act is important, but he is also convinced that it is a "very good sign". According to the founder and CEO of Deutsche Erdwärme, the federal government has thus recognized geothermal energy as a potential factor in the heating transition. However, the law passed by the cabinet alone will not trigger a "wave of projects". "It is a piece in the mosaic, nothing more," emphasized Pohl in an interview with E&M.

Secured funding is the basic prerequisite for scaling up. Not only funding is crucial for this, but also private capital. However, investors need a reliable framework. However, uncertain funding instruments, a confusing legal framework and a lack of industrial infrastructure, which has to be procured abroad at great expense, act as a deterrent.

He believes that the German government's target of supporting the heating transition with 10 TWh by 2030 is unrealistic. In Pohl's opinion, creating the basis for a project portfolio by 2030 that can later feed 10 TWh into the grid is realistic, but would require a doubling of previous efforts in the coming years.

According to Pohl, the potential of geothermal energy is considerable: the use of natural thermal water deposits alone with the help of deep geothermal energy could cover around a quarter of Germany's heating and cooling requirements in the future.

The exploration insurance provided by KfW and Munich Re is an important instrument for scaling up geothermal energy. However, Pohl warns against exaggerated expectations. "Worst-case scenarios are insured. The risk itself is not eliminated," says the CEO of Deutsche Erdwärme.

He positions his own company as a project developer with the necessary expertise. After all, a geothermal project cannot simply be implemented with two project managers. "We don't employ our experts out of an interest in special issues, but because these skills are absolutely essential," says Pohl.

Process management is an even greater challenge than technical implementation. Coordinating the companies involved, liaising with the authorities and, last but not least, informing the public are challenges - and the thinned-out service landscape is an obstacle. Along with the oil and gas industry, drilling and service technology companies have also moved abroad. "Today, we buy services in Norway or Romania. That makes projects considerably more expensive," says Pohl.

Nevertheless, Deutsche Erdwärme is currently developing around a dozen projects in several federal states. You can read about what else its CEO has to say, for example about approval standards or heating networks, in the print edition of Energie & Management on October 1.

Author: Fritz Wilhelm