October 1, 2012

By Greg Ettling

PanTerra Energy, an accredited alternative energy solutions provider specializing in geothermal heat pump systems, is the first company of its kind in the country to have received a Public Utilities Commission (PUC) registration. This PUC designation is the first step in allowing PanTerra to apply for a permit to act as a sole utility, leasing and selling direct access to a geothermal loop field without additional third-party involvement. PanTerra designs, builds and installs what many believe to be the next wave in eco-friendly and cost-effective improvements for homes, businesses and municipalities.

“From the outset, we sought to differentiate ourselves from other geothermal heating and cooling suppliers,” says co-founder Mike Ryan. “Acquiring the PUC license is the initial proof-point, as we’re able to make geothermal technology available to a wider audience at a lower cost.”

“More than any single factor, the added costs of the loop field are suppressing the widespread adoption of geothermal heat pump systems (GHPs),” says Ben Northcutt, executive director of the Colorado Geo Energy & Heat Pump Association. “If you view the loop field as an infrastructure component of a heating and cooling system, it makes a lot of sense to treat it as a thermal utility, which is the concept that PanTerra is pioneering. If you can provide users with a straightforward monthly cost for their heating and cooling, without the added financial burden of buying the loop field infrastructure, then GHPs can quickly become a mainstream technology.”

PanTerra’s founders have also met with local legislators who are equally excited about their prospects and the creation of additional green jobs.

Source: National Driller

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Move over water, gas and electricity—geothermal can now operate as a utility.

KATHERINE TWEED: SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

The recent success of solar PV has nothing to do with the sun shining brighter. Instead, the uptake in solar is largely due to falling technology costs and new financing schemes that don’t rely on homeowners or businesses to shell out cash upfront for an entire system.

PanTerra Energy LLC has become the first private company in the state to be registered with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission as a geothermal utility, and now will seek to provide geothermal heating and cooling services to clients.

It can cost millions to install geothermal exchange systems in commercial office buildings, which has been an industry barrier for years, according to Mike Ryan, president and co-owner of PanTerra. Thus the Englewood startup, which opened in 2011, is going to follow the third-party ownership business model common in the solar-power industry.

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Source: Denver Business Journal

July 13, 2012