Based on an article by Claus Hecking in Der Spiegel
The article highlights a technological irony: whilst the major tech corporations in Silicon Valley (Google, Meta, Amazon) are desperately searching for clean, large-scale energy sources for their AI data centres, they are relying on a technology that was largely co-developed in Germany – but which has almost disappeared into obscurity there, both politically and socially.
The key message: ‘Deep Tech’ from Germany fuelling the US boom
The article describes EGS technology (Enhanced Geothermal Systems). It highlights that methods for creating fractures in deep rock to extract heat have been researched in Europe (specifically in the Franco-German project in Soultz-sous-Forêts) for decades.
The key points of the article:
- AI’s insatiable appetite: AI models require enormous amounts of electricity. As wind and solar power fluctuate, companies such as Google need a ‘base load’ – in other words, energy that is available 24/7. This is where geothermal energy comes into play.
- German expertise: Many of the drilling techniques, sensors and simulation models used today by US start-ups such as Fervo Energy are based on German engineering and research. Germany is regarded worldwide as a pioneer in geological research and precision drilling.
- The ‘German Paradox’: Der Spiegel criticises the fact that, whilst Germany has funded the basic research and developed the patents, implementation within the country has been held back by bureaucracy, fears of induced seismicity (micro-earthquakes) and a lack of venture capital.
- The US as the beneficiary: US companies have adapted German expertise, combined it with fracking technologies from the oil industry, and industrialised it. Google is already using these technologies in Nevada to operate data centres in a carbon-neutral manner.
- A wake-up call for policymakers: The article concludes with a warning that Germany runs the risk of permanently losing a key technology for the energy transition to other countries – much as happened previously with photovoltaics.
Summary of the article:
The technology intended to meet the energy demands of artificial intelligence in the US today is an ‘export product’ of German research that never achieved a breakthrough for industrial application in its own country. Der Spiegel describes this as a missed opportunity for Germany as a business location.
Link to the newspaper article (for subscribers)