Fervo Energy exports first power from 33 MW Utah geothermal block
The first Cape Station block is due for contractual commercial operation by Oct. 1, while two more blocks target Jan. 1, 2027.
Ines Halvorsen
By Sept. 24, a 33-megawatt block at Cape Station in Utah had sent its first power to the grid, Fervo Energy NASDAQFRVO reported, with contractual commercial operation due by Oct. 1. Fervo says the block is already selling electricity, while the Cape Station development has about 900 megawatts of contracted offtake. For the wider site, Fervo signed two 15-year agreements in June 2024 to supply 320 megawatts to Southern California Edison.
Fervo shares NASDAQFRVO fell to US$15.18 at the Sept. 25 New York close, as of 4:00:01 p.m. EDT. The first-power release did not disclose a price per megawatt-hour or a revenue forecast for the newly exporting block.
First power means the initial GeoBlock has synchronized with the grid and exported electricity. Fervo said in its Sept. 24 release that it is still bringing the full well system online ahead of the block's contractual commercial-operation date. The other two 33-megawatt blocks make up the balance of an approximately 100-megawatt first phase.
"Fervo will continue ramping up the first GeoBlock as it brings the full well system online while commissioning the remaining two GeoBlocks, which are expected to reach contractual COD by January 1, 2027," the company said in its Sept. 24 release.
Utility Contract Covers 320 Megawatts
Fervo's June 2024 announcement put its Southern California Edison agreements at 320 megawatts over 15 years and said the utility would buy power from Cape Station. That announcement expected a first 70-megawatt phase to operate in 2026. Fervo's latest schedule describes roughly 100 megawatts in the first phase, with the second and third blocks targeting contractual operation by Jan. 1, 2027.
Another 400-megawatt phase is under construction and has an expected commercial-operation date in 2028, Fervo said. Its Sept. 24 release puts contracted offtake for Cape Station at about 900 megawatts, while the first two phases total about 500 megawatts of planned capacity. Fervo also cites more than four gigawatts of eventual site capacity, but assigns no completion date to that broader figure.
The 2024 announcement said Fervo had separately contracted 53 megawatts with California community choice aggregators in 2022. Fervo's June 2024 release placed its earlier Google collaboration at a Nevada pilot. The Sept. 24 Cape Station notice does not identify a buyer for the initial Utah block or break down the 900-megawatt total by customer.
Fervo uses horizontal drilling adapted from oil and gas operations to reach hot rock from multiple wells on a single pad. The company says that method opens geothermal resources traditional wells could not reach, while the first block's wells are still being ramped and two more blocks are being commissioned. Its release points to data-centre electricity demand as one market for around-the-clock geothermal power, without identifying a data-centre customer for this block.
Read more: CBRE Group signs five-year deal to operate Fermi data centre
The next contractual milestone is Oct. 1, when Fervo expects its first 33-megawatt GeoBlock to reach commercial operation. The remaining two blocks are due to follow by Jan. 1, 2027.
