Tim Latimer is CEO and co-founder of Fervo Energy, a startup making geothermal energy a viable alternative to fossil fuels. By repurposing technology from the oil and gas industry, Fervo drills deep below the Earth’s surface to reach hot rocks and converts that heat into 24/7 clean energy. Google is already working with Fervo to help power its data centers, and the Biden Administration recently approved a Fervo project in Utah that the company says could power 2 million homes. This year, the company slashed drilling times by 70%, a breakthrough that cut costs per well nearly in half.
What is the single most important action you think the public, or a specific company or government (other than your own), needs to take in the next year to advance the climate agenda?
Addressing climate change is going to require us to build an unprecedented amount of infrastructure so we can replace the current fossil fuel-dominated systems with cleaner solutions. Right now, many of the solutions we need are stalled out by a convoluted permitting and regulatory system that doesn’t prioritize clean infrastructure. There is an opportunity to enact smart reforms that would allow the needed clean solutions to be built in a streamlined way but still keep exceptionally high standards on local environmental impact.
What is a climate solution (other than your own) that isn’t getting the attention or funding it deserves?
Affordable housing often isn’t looked at as a climate solution, but our ability to build new resilient housing in denser areas that are walkable, bikeable, and have access to transit could be a major enabler of carbon emission reductions. There are exciting developments like Concept Neighborhood in my hometown of Houston that are working to create that kind of connected housing. More people in the climate world need to realize these are part of the toolkit to address climate change.
What’s the most important climate legislation that could pass in the next year?
The biggest thing Congress can do is help create certainty in clean energy markets and avoid wide swings in policy. That means continuing a trajectory of investments in innovative technologies, reducing red tape that slows down clean energy developments, and supporting American-made clean energy solutions. Surging demand growth from the AI revolution, onshoring manufacturing, and economy-wide electrification creates a fantastic opportunity to build an affordable, reliable, and clean energy system. Federal policymakers need to lean into this generational opportunity and provide clear and consistent direction to the market to enable innovative solutions to scale.