Icelandic President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson recently testified before the Energy and Natural Resource Committee of the US Senate about his nation’s experience with geothermal energy. In addition to fielding the senators’ questions on the subject, he also submitted a report co-authored with experts on the subject in Iceland.
Grimsson suggested the US should work together with Iceland to increase its geothermal energy use. One of the benefits of doing so, he said, was attracting companies like Microsoft who have become interested in associating with sustainable energy sources.
Microsoft recently put Iceland on a shortlist of three potential countries where a server farm for the company might be established.
“Even though the country may not be chosen, the fact that one of the most powerful companies in the world selected Iceland as one of three possible countries in which it wants to establish future facilities is a great recognition,” Grímsson told the media at a Glitnir conference on geothermal energy in New York recently.
Microsoft CEO Bill Gates recently met the Icelandic President in Scotland. Following the discussion, the country was placed on a list of nine possible places for Microsoft’s latest venture. That list has now been narrowed down to three possibilities.
Cooperation between Iceland and America on geothermal issues has already begun. The Icelandic American Energy company announced that they will soon begin drilling in order to supply geothermic power to a ski area in California. Furthermore, Glitnir, a leading Icelandic/Norwegian financial group, recently announced a business drive for the US geothermal energy market where it says development investments could top USD40 billion by 2025.