Christmas came early for the geothermal industry when the latest federal stimulus bill included a long-sought extension of tax credits for geothermal installation.
The baffling element of the Omnibus spending bill passed by Congress in December 2015 was the lawmakers’ decision to extend residential and commercial tax credits for solar photovoltaics and big wind through 2021, while allowing similar incentives for ground source heat pumps and other “orphaned” technologies to die on the vine.
That landmark in geothermal history was eventually followed by the Commonwealth Building in Portland, Oregon, which became the first commercial building in the U.S. to employ a geothermal system for heating and cooling.
If there is someone out there with more industry passion than Jack DiEnna, I have yet to meet them. The best way to describe DiEnna would be the “godfather of geothermal.”
Attendees of the 2018 International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) Conference and Expo were glowing with optimism, encouraged that the worst may be behind them.