Geothermal energy startup GTO Technologies, affiliated with the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, has closed its initial seed funding round, securing $1.7 million towards a target of $5 million. The startup collaborated with Mines’ Corporate and Foundation Relations Office, the Office of Research and Technology Transfer and the Global Energy Future Initiative to raise these funds.
GTO Technologies is focused on developing a second-generation Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) Technology that enables the construction and control of large subsurface heat exchangers for zero-carbon electricity generation and direct heat applications. The aim is to decarbonize power generation and district heating. Historically, EGS has faced economic failures due to non-symmetrical fluid flow within a limited number of fractures, leading to short-circuiting in heat exchangers, causing premature thermal decline and reduced efficiency.
“What differentiates GTO Technologies from all other systems on the market is our ability to overcome the natural tendency for short circuiting, and to control the conformance from the injectors into the producers, improving EGS power generation,” said William Fleckenstein, founder of GTO Technologies and Mines’ director of strategic business development in the Office of Global Initiatives and Business Development.
The initial seed funding will be used to complete the development and testing of second-generation downhole tools, which are specialized instruments for drilling and well interventions, and to prepare for commercial deployment. The Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment has emerged as the largest investor so far. The foundation emphasizes that “the actions needed to prevent catastrophic (climate) change will be impossible without widespread public support.”