Underground seasonal energy storage

Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES) is the seasonal storage of heat and/or cold into a portion of the underground that is generally performed using a shallow geothermal system.

Guide
Jan 16, 2026

Seasonal energy storage for zero-emissions multi-energy

The deployment of diverse energy storage technologies, with the combination of daily, weekly and seasonal storage dynamics, allows for the reduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2)

Guide
Jul 17, 2025

Wind–Photovoltaic–Electrolyzer-Underground Hydrogen Storage

Photovoltaic (PV) and wind energy generation result in low greenhouse gas footprints and can supply electricity to the grid or generate hydrogen for various applications, including seasonal energy storage. Designing integrated wind–PV–electrolyzer underground hydrogen storage (UHS) projects is complex due to the interactions between components.

Guide
Oct 02, 2025

Seasonal hydrogen storage for sustainable renewable energy

Economic comparison between the storage technologies is subject to different factors such as capacity, storage time etc. Taking these factors into account is required in order to have a valid comparison, however, some factors such as storage time would be a problem in that regard, where comparing an underground storage system that can store energy for weeks with

Guide
Feb 01, 2026

Underground Thermal Energy Storage

Underground thermal energy storage (UTES) is a form of energy storage that provides large-scale seasonal storage of cold and heat in natural underground sites. [3-6] There exist thermal energy supplying systems that use geothermal

Guide
Aug 07, 2025

Assesment for optimal underground seasonal thermal energy storage

Underground seasonal thermal energy storage (USTES) facilitates the efficient utilization of renewable energy sources and energy conservation. USTES can effectively solve the mismatching

Guide
Jun 25, 2026

Numerical simulation of underground seasonal cold energy storage

An underground seasonal cold energy storage system for. 10 MW solar thermal power plant is designed in the desert. area in north-western China under typical weather. conditions. The seasonal

Guide
Apr 22, 2026

SEASONAL UNDERGROUND THERMAL ENERGY STORAGE

electrical energy input, by storing heat or “cold” for use during the opposite season; this is called seasonal thermal energy storage. Seasonal thermal energy storage (STES) has three principal obstacles: 1. A large amount of storage medium must be available with the heat capacity to satisfy the integrated load of an entire season. 2.

Guide
Oct 04, 2025

Unlocking the potential of underground hydrogen storage for

This review paper provides a critical examination of underground hydrogen storage (UHS) as a viable solution for large-scale energy storage, surpassing 10 GWh capacities, and contrasts it with aboveground methods. It exploes into the challenges posed by hydrogen injection, such as the potential for hydrogen loss and alterations in the petrophysical and

Guide
Jun 16, 2026

Underground Large Scale Seasonal Energy Storage for

Recognised as a game-changer for decarbonisation, district heating lacks effective large-scale seasonal energy storage solutions. With this in mind, the EU-funded

Guide
Jan 01, 2026

Seasonal Underground Thermal Energy Storage

Without Underground Seasonal Thermal Energy Storage, 55% of produced thermal heat will be dumped to the environment and 38% of annual heating demand will have to be procured with conventional source of heat (in this project, it will be gas boiler). 2.2- Vacuum Tube Solar Collectors - 30 Tubes Each - Qty=24.

Guide
Jan 15, 2026

Assesment for optimal underground seasonal thermal energy

An optimal design for seasonal underground energy storage systems is presented. This study includes the possible use of natural structures at a depth of 100 to 500 m

Guide
Aug 06, 2025

Experimental and numerical investigations on operation

To investigate operation characteristics of seasonal borehole underground thermal energy storage (SBUTES) with different operational strategies, a model test platform with reduced size was established based on similarity principle. The test results show that the larger the start-stop time ratio, the smaller the average heat exchange rate per unit depth (HERPUD)

Guide
Oct 24, 2025

(PDF) Wind-Photovoltaic-Electrolyzer-Underground Hydrogen Storage

UHS provides seasonal energy storage in areas with mismatches between RES production and consumption. For the Austrian project, the levelized cost of underground hydrogen storage (LCHS) is 0.

Guide
May 18, 2026

Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES)

A more recent underground thermal storage technology, developed during the last 40-50 years, means that thermal energy is actively stored for the purpose of later extraction. So, heat is

Guide
Oct 24, 2025

Large scale underground seasonal thermal energy storage in China

Underground seasonal thermal energy storage (USTES) has received extensive attention all over the world with the development of renewable energy heating technology. The

Guide
Oct 24, 2025

Underground Thermal Energy Storage | SpringerLink

Systems using natural underground sites for storing thermal energy are called underground thermal energy storage (UTES) systems. Because large volume is necessary for

Guide
Feb 05, 2026

Development status and prospect of underground thermal energy storage

A review of available technologies for seasonal thermal energy storage. Solar Energy, 103: 610−638. DOI: 10.1016/j.solener.2013.06.006. Xu LY, Torrens JI, Guo F, et al. 2018. Application of large underground seasonal thermal energy storage in district heating system: A model-based energy performance assessment of a pilot system in Chifeng, China.

Guide
Jul 27, 2025

Underground Thermal Energy Storage Systems and Their

Application of large underground seasonal thermal energy storage in district heating system: A model-based energy performance assessment of a pilot system in Chifeng, China. Article.

Guide
Jan 10, 2026

Experimental investigation of underground seasonal cold energy storage

Experimental investigation of underground seasonal cold energy storage using borehole heat exchangers based on laboratory scale sandbox. Author links open overlay panel Zulkarnain in summers, cold energy from underground storage can be transferred to buildings to fulfill cooling load requirements. Likewise, to fulfill space heating demand

Guide
Jun 19, 2026

UNDERGROUND THERMAL ENERGY STORAGE

underground geothermal energy storage (heating soil > 77°F). This seasonal stored heat can then be extracted in the winter by a heat pump and be used for space heating.

Guide
Dec 27, 2025

Performance investigation of a solar heating system with underground

Downloadable (with restrictions)! This study reports the performance of a demonstrated 2304 m2 solar-heated greenhouse equipped with a seasonal thermal energy storage system in Shanghai, east China. This energy storage system utilises 4970 m3 of underground soil to store the heat captured by a 500 m2 solar collector in non-heating seasons through U-tube heat exchangers.

Guide
Mar 10, 2026

Our Services

Over the past 30 years, we have supported our customers in converting gas and oil reservoirs into underground gas storage (UGS) facilities and have advised them in extending the capacity of their UGS operations to cope with the increasing, yet fluctuating, seasonal energy demand.

Guide
Oct 25, 2025

Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES)

Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES) Bo Nordell Div. Architecture and Water, Luleå University of Technology, SE-97187 Luleå, Sweden, storage types the name was changed to STES for Seasonal Thermal Energy Storage. Thanks to Ed Morofsky, at the Public Works and Government Services Canada, all issues of ATES and STES have

Guide
Mar 09, 2026

Chapter 2 Underground Thermal Energy Storage

seasonal storage, a longer term ([3 months), is currently much less common, but its application is growing worldwide. UTES is one form of TES and it can keep a longer term and even seasonal thermal energy storage. When large volumes are needed for thermal storage, underground thermal energy storage systems are most commonly used.

Guide
Jun 03, 2026

Numerical simulation of underground seasonal cold energy storage

This paper aims to explore an efficient, cost-effective, and water-saving seasonal cold energy storage technique based on borehole heat exchangers to cool the condenser water in a 10 MW solar thermal power plant. The proposed seasonal cooling mechanism is designed for the areas under typical weather conditions to utilize the low ambient temperature during the

Guide
Aug 14, 2025

Assesment for optimal underground seasonal thermal energy storage

An optimal design for seasonal underground energy storage systems is presented. This study includes the possible use of natural structures at a depth of 100 to 500 m depth. For safety reasons the storage fluid considered is water at an initial temperature of 90 °C. A finite element method simulation using collected data on the thermal

Guide
Jul 18, 2025

HEATSTORE Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES)

underground thermal energy storage (UTES) in the energy system, 2) providing a means to maximise but especially the seasonal dips and peaks in heat demand. Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES) technologies need to be further developed and need to become an integral component in the future energy system

Guide
Apr 09, 2026

Overview of Large-Scale Underground Energy Storage Technologies for

Overview of Large-Scale Underground Energy Storage Technologies for Integration of Renewable Energies and Criteria for Reservoir Identification. ATES is the shallow geothermal technology with the highest energy efficiency and it is adequate for seasonal energy storage, but strongly relies on the right aquifer properties and conditions ;

Guide
Jan 24, 2026

90-GWh thermal energy storage facility could heat a city for a year

An energy supplier in Finland has announced the upcoming construction of an underground seasonal thermal energy storage facility about the size of two Madison Square Gardens that could meet the

Guide
Jun 26, 2026

Numerical simulation of underground seasonal cold energy storage

Numerical simulation of underground seasonal cold energy storage for a 10 MW solar thermal power plant in north-western China using TRNSYS. PDF(2063 KB) and water-saving seasonal cold energy storage technique based on borehole heat exchangers to cool the condenser water in a 10 MW solar thermal power plant. The proposed seasonal cooling

Guide
Apr 07, 2026

Underground hydrogen storage to balance seasonal variations in energy

T1 - Underground hydrogen storage to balance seasonal variations in energy demand: Impact of well configuration on storage performance in deep saline aquifers. AU - Harati, Saeed. AU - Rezaei Gomari, Sina. AU - Gasanzade, Firdovsi. AU - Bauer, Sebastian . AU - Pak, Tannaz. AU - Orr, Caroline. PY - 2023/4/11. Y1 - 2023/4/11

Guide
Mar 23, 2026

Underground Thermal Energy Storage

Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES) is the seasonal storage of heat and/or cold into a portion of the underground that is generally performed using a shallow geothermal system.

Guide
Aug 03, 2025

Characterizing Hydrogen Storage Potential in U.S. Underground

Large-scale, long-duration H 2 storage will be an essential component of the supply chain necessary to balance the mismatches between energy supply and demand and to remedy intermittent disconnects in energy generation in the same way that seasonal underground storage of natural gas currently operates (DOE, 2020; Goodman et al., 2022; Heinemann et al.,

Guide
Feb 21, 2026

Underground Thermal Energy Storage

Underground thermal energy storage (UTES) is a form of energy storage that provides large-scale seasonal storage of cold and heat in natural underground sites. [3-6] There exist thermal energy supplying systems that use geothermal energy for cooling and heating, such as the deep lake water cooling (DLWC) systems which extract naturally cooled water under deep lakes as a

Guide
Oct 01, 2025

Numerical simulation of underground Seasonal Solar Thermal Energy

The thermal energy was then stored in an underground fabricated Seasonal Solar Thermal Energy Storage (SSTES) bed. The SSTES bed allowed for the collected energy to supplement or replace fossil fuel supplied space heat in

6 Frequently Asked Questions about “Underground seasonal energy storage”

What is seasonal thermal energy storage (STES)?

Seasonal thermal energy storage (STES), also known as inter-seasonal thermal energy storage, is the storage of heat or cold for periods of up to several months. The thermal energy can be collected whenever it is available and be used whenever needed, such as in the opposing season.

What is underground thermal storage?

A more recent underground thermal storage technology, developed during the last 40-50 years, means that thermal energy is actively stored for the purpose of later extraction. So, heat is either injected for later use (heat storage) or extracted from the ground (cold storage) which is later used for cooling.

What is Utes (underground thermal energy storage)?

There are also combinations in which the storage is used for both short-term and seasonal storage. There are a number of such technologies summarized by the acronym UTES (Underground Thermal Energy Storage). 30 years within the framework of IEA (International Energy Agency).

Where is thermal energy stored?

So, the thermal energy is stored in the groundwater and in the matrix around it. There are usually several wells, for extraction and injection, and these are separated in order to keep the warm and cold water from mixing. ATES systems are large scale systems mainly for seasonal thermal energy storage both heating and cooling.

What is thermal energy storage?

So, heat is either injected for later use (heat storage) or extracted from the ground (cold storage) which is later used for cooling. Such thermal energy storage is mainly for long-term storage or seasonal storage of thermal energy storage. There are also combinations in which the storage is used for both short-term and seasonal storage.

Are solar energy storage systems underground?

The experience of USTES applications worldwide in recent years shows that most of the solar energy seasonal storage projects have significant economic, social and environmental benefits. However, the key part of solar energy storage system is underground.

Battery & Energy Storage Insights

Ready to Power Your Project?

Contact our team for a free feasibility study, custom battery sizing, and a competitive quote.