UNFC and Geothermal Energy

On 19 September 2014, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the International Geothermal Association (IGA) was signed, in which IGA agreed to:

  1. Develop Specifications and Guidelines for the application of UNFC-2009 to geothermal energy, hereafter referred to as the Texts.
  2. Maintain evergreen the Texts in a manner consistent with their proper application through regular and periodic review.
  3. Conduct its activities in relation to development and maintenance of the Texts through a transparent governance structure and processes that allows input from all stakeholders.
  4. Select a representative from the UNECE Expert Group on Resource Classification (now Expert Group on Resource Management) to participate in IGA development of the Texts.
  5. Invite a representative from the UNECE Expert Group to be an observer at meetings of the IGA Board of Directors.

Under this MoU, Specifications for Application of UNFC-2009 to Geothermal Energy Resources were jointly developed by IGA and UNECE and became operational on 30 September 2016.

On 30 December 2019, UNECE issued the UNFC Update 2019, prompting the need for an update of the Specifications, as well as of additional Guidance to facilitate implementation and uptake of the Specifications.

At the 74th meeting of IGA’s Board of Directors on 1st November 2020, Motion 74-2 was adopted to set up a dedicated UNFC Committee as Ad Hoc Committee, with Gioia Falcone as the Chair. The UNFC Ad Hoc Committee is mandated until May 2023 to carry out concrete, results-oriented activities in the work areas and with the objectives set out in the MoU.

More information: https://www.unece.org/energywelcome/areas-of-work/unfc-and-sustainable-resource-management/applications/energyseunfc-re/unfc-and-geothermal-energy.html

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