Record #00456Technology archive
A 250 kW geothermal power plant began operating at Larderello in Tuscany, Italy, in 1913, regarded by the US Department of Energy as the first commercial geothermal electricity production. The 1904 demonstration had only established technical feasibility.
Achievement date
1913
1913
In 1904, geothermal steam powered a small generator that lit five bulbs, demonstrating electricity generation from geothermal resources.
The 250 kW plant constructed in 1913 transformed the demonstration into an operating facility. Dry-steam technology subsequently developed further.
The US Department of Energy's 2013 centennial account explicitly dates first commercial geothermal electricity production to 1913, supporting the commercial-operation rather than experimental-demonstration scope.
The record conclusion has sufficient verification support.
Basis: direct confirmation by an authority
DOE's engineering history distinguishes the 1904 lighting demonstration from the 250 kW plant built in 1913; its 2013 centennial article explicitly identifies 1913 as the start of commercial geothermal electricity production.
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