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Geothermal Energy: Bureau of Land Management Should Improve Permitting Process as Development Demand Grows on Federal Lands

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October 08, 2026 12:54 Announcement

Geothermal energy—natural heat under the earth's surface—can be used to generate emissions-free electricity. The Bureau of Land Management reviews and approves permit requests to use federal land for geothermal projects. Since 2019, there has been a steady increase in these requests.

We found that the Bureau could do more to improve its permitting process. For example, it doesn't have handbooks with detailed and consistent permitting procedures. It also doesn't track the status of permits. As a result, the Bureau is missing opportunities to process permits in a more timely and consistent manner.

Our recommendations address these issues.

Utah Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy

A collection of buildings in the middle of a desert with mountains in the background.

The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has processed an increasing volume of land nominations, leases, and permits for geothermal development on federal lands since 2019. Geothermal projects use heat from the earth’s interior to generate electricity. Parties interested in developing geothermal projects on federal lands nominate acres for BLM to review against land use plans. Such nominations increased from about 25,800 acres in 2020 to more than a million acres in 2025. BLM then offers qualifying lands for lease at auctions known as competitive lease sales, which have also increased since 2020. Once land is leased, developers submit plans to BLM for review and apply for permits at various stages of development. Drilling permits approved annually by BLM grew from seven in 2019 to 68 in 2024.

Total Acreage Nominated for Geothermal Use and Offered for Lease, 2020–2025

Geothermal developers and BLM officials identified various challenges facing the geothermal program, including:

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