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How does Iceland turn underground heat into electricity?

At Hellisheiði in Iceland, underground heat feeds a very familiar piece of machinery: a turbine. Wells bring up geothermal fluid, steam is separated, and its energy helps generate electricity. Heat can also serve the district heating system. Following one plant’s fluid and energy paths makes the process clearer than treating every geothermal power station as the same design.

3–7 min

Questions you could explore

  • Where does the fluid go after its useful heat has been extracted?
  • What limits how much energy a geothermal reservoir can supply over time?

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  • ON PowerPower plants

    The operator describes separating steam from geothermal fluid and using it in turbines, alongside heat production.

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