The energy grid needs reliable, carbon-free power around the clock and geothermal might be the most underestimated solution on the table. A century of oil and gas expertise is now being repurposed to unlock heat sitting beneath our feet almost anywhere on Earth, and in doing so, it's also unlocking a new form of long-duration energy storage that requires no mountain, no reservoir, and no battery chemistry.

In this episode, host Alejandro Diego sits down with Cindy Taff, CEO of Sage Geo Systems. Together they explore how Sage is moving beyond the geological constraints of conventional geothermal, what it takes to engineer a reservoir from scratch, how their underground pressure storage system works like an inverted pumped hydro plant, and why companies like Meta and the US Department of Defense are already signing on.

You can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Alejandro De Diego - US Market Analyst

Modo Energy helps the owners, operators, builders, and financiers of battery energy storage understand the market — and make the most out of their assets. Want all the latest power market news? Sign up for our free Weekly Dispatch newsletter:

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Chapters:

00:00 Next-gen geothermal intro

01:49 Cindy Taff background

04:51 Geothermal opportunity

07:19 Conventional geothermal limits

08:39 How geothermal works

10:38 Geothermal grid baseload

11:44 US heat resource map

13:13 Oil and gas drilling tech

16:50 Discovering underground storage

17:21 Earth Store technology

18:07 Storage capacity explained

19:35 Fast dispatch no degradation

21:42 Pelton turbine explained

23:47 Why viable now

25:30 Energy storage business model

27:12 Target customers

28:27 Development obstacles

29:52 Permitting process

31:36 Meta 150MW deal

33:41 5.5 terawatt potential

36:17 Grid transformation impact

37:49 What drives Cindy

39:16 Direct heating use case

40:30 Sage 2035 milestones

42:20 Energy expansion contrarian view