Government stepping in almost always distorts things. Whether that distortion bends toward your advantage or disadvantage often makes the difference in how you feel about it. In the geothermal part of National Driller’s readership, we’re seeing the fallout now of government stepping out of a market, and how professionals in that market are trying to move on.
An important tax credit, which made geothermal HVAC installations more competitive with other types of systems, like forced air, expired at the end of 2016. (Read our cover story on page 12.) There are no clear sign as to whether it will be reinstated, and the geothermal sector now has to come to grips with how to survive and thrive without it.